


A Twist in Time

by wolf08



Category: Naruto
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Romance, Slow Romance, Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2019-07-28 05:15:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 86,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16234907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolf08/pseuds/wolf08
Summary: With Konoha on the verge of destruction, Sakura is sent on a last-resort mission to save her world by travelling to the past. Join her in coping with her old body's shortcomings, testing the natural laws of time, falling in love all over again, and rediscovering who she is. Time-travel. SasuSaku. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3799701/1/A-Twist-in-Time





	1. The Last Mission

**Author's Note:**

> Hi. :) You may recognize me from ff.net or Tumblr. I am finally deciding to upload my brainchild, A Twist in Time, a 41-chapter fic I wrote from 2015-2018, to AO3. Some readers have mentioned that they prefer this platform, so I thought I'd check it out myself. I will gradually migrate the complete story here, so please stay tuned for the remaining chapters! As always, I look forward to reading your comments. :)
> 
> Story context: This story takes place in the Shippuuden saga just before the fourth shinobi war. Please use your imagination!
> 
> Rated T for language, violence and sexual themes
> 
> Cover photo credit: Courtesy of mariyand-r (on Tumblr) who has created some unreal fan art for this story.
> 
> Disclaimer: This story is a work of fan fiction using characters from the NarutoTM world, which is trademarked by Masashi Kishimoto. The story I tell here is created for entertainment only and is not part of the official NarutoTM storyline. I do not profit financially from this story.

**Photo Credit:** mariyand-r, http://mariyand-r.tumblr.com/post/145729616104/another-drawing-inspired-by-wolf08s-fanfic

***

The soft glow of a crescent moon simmered through a haze of clouds, casting long shadows on abandoned roads and alleys. Enclosed in a forest of trees was Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, where a medley of civilians and ninjas resided. An uncharacteristic eeriness had swept through the village. The shops were closed down. The doors bolted shut.

Darkness. Emptiness. Not a soul stirred tonight.

Except for one.

As a result of years spent training in the art of survival, Sakura effortlessly concealed the sound of her sandals padding against the surface of the dirt road. She moved swiftly and purposefully, sparing only a glance or two over her shoulder at the empty streets behind her. There was no wind to tug at her pale, pink, shoulder-length hair or light to highlight the emotion brimming behind her emerald green eyes.

She arrived at the base of a flight of stairs leading into the tower at the heart of the village and she began to climb them. Her legs quivered in the icy air and her stomach clenched in anticipation. When she reached the top, she hesitated for a moment before disappearing behind a set of doors.

***

"You summoned me?" Sakura asked once the door to the Hokage's office was securely closed behind her. The dimly lit office was cluttered with stacks of dusty books, scrolls, and ninja tools. At the largest desk in the center of the room sat a beautiful, middle-aged woman with blonde hair tied in two parts.

"You know why you are here, Sakura," Tsunade replied briskly and beckoning to the chair facing her desk with a wave of her hand. "Please sit down." Sakura obeyed and took a seat facing the village's Hokage and stared expectantly at her mentor's face. Tsunade was so self-assured that even during times of total confusion and chaos, she always knew just what to do. The flicker of doubt that crossed Tsunade's features must have been in Sakura's imagination.

The blonde woman rose from her chair and walked to the floor-length window behind the desk, gazing out at her village. "War is upon us," she muttered gravely. The edges of Sakura's ears prickled. This was not news to her, but that sure didn't make the information any easier to digest. The village was on a high security emergency lockdown and Orochimaru was at large so it made sense that something terrible was brewing. Tsunade's eyes darted back in Sakura's direction.

"Sound Village spies were detected in the forest on the village's outskirts. After capturing and interrogating one, an ANBU Black Ops team confirmed that he will strike tonight."

Sakura's chest tightened. Hearing the words spoken aloud made the reality of the situation really sink in. The war on Konoha was at its inception. Her nightmares would soon be realized. "Tsunade-sama, how many villagers know? Have you started warning the people of Konoha?" Sakura asked, feeling a wave of panic come over her. Hundreds of helpless families were locked in their homes across the village.

Including her own.

"I intend to in an hour or so... If I have to," Tsunade muttered, returning to the desk and rifling through a stack of papers distractedly.

Confused by her response, Sakura asked, "You mean... you've planned a pre-emptive attack?"

Tsunade lifted her head and gazed directly at Sakura's face. "Something like that," she said flatly, her eyes twinkling. Sakura was baffled by her mentor's calm facade. Tsunade dropped the stack of papers on the desk with a dismissive air. "I'm afraid we're greatly outnumbered, Sakura. Our troops will stand no chance if this war carries out. It must be stopped."

Sakura nodded, unsure what to make of Tsunade's comment. The Hokage was right, of course. The ninjas of Konoha rarely fought as a single unit and were anything but ready to assemble against a threat like this. In fact, most of the village's ninjas were currently hiding with their families under the false impression that the lockdown was happening because of a prison breakout. Very few had the faintest idea that Orochimaru was planning to attack, let alone launch the attack today. Sakura, being the Hokage's apprentice and confidante, tended to have the upper hand in learning important information in a timely manner. A part of her had known from the moment the lockdown was announced that this was no ordinary procedure. The climate in the Hokage Tower over the past several weeks had told her as much.

"Tsunade-sama, may I ask what your plan is?" Sakura asked hesitantly. She had a nagging feeling that her mentor was withholding a crucial piece of information.

Tsunade lowered her eyes to the desk and paused before answering. "Sakura, in the years I have known you, you have flourished not only as my apprentice, but as an independent and determined warrior. You have demonstrated fierce loyalty to my village and most importantly of all… I trust you."

Sakura stared on blankly.  _This is hardly a time for flattery. What is she getting at?_

Lacing her fingers together, Tsunade's expression hardened. "You are a perfect candidate for this mission. It'll be a huge wager but I've got a good feeling about it. You see, I would go on the mission myself, but the years have worn my abilities thin."

Sakura was perched on the edge of her seat and her mind was reeling.  _What...?_

"Sakura, I am assigning you the mission of stopping Orochimaru in his tracks."

Sakura's jaw dropped.

"-To the best of your ability, of course," Tsunade added with a smile, as if that would somehow take the edge off her loaded declaration.

Sakura was dumbstruck. "Tsunade-sama, I'm not sure what you're planning, but I… I'm a medical ninja," she stammered through the growing dryness in her throat. "I'm trained to support powerful ninjas – not to be one. Sure, I've grown a lot in the past few years, but I'm not  _nearly_  qualified to stop a  _Sanin_ on my own!" Sakura had risen to her feet and found that her palms were clammy and her breathing had quickened. But her green eyes held traces of steadfast defiance. Whatever Tsunade was plotting sounded like complete insanity.

But Tsunade's determination did not waver either. Acknowledging Sakura's emotional spiral, she got to her feet and approached the spot where her prized student was standing. "I'll get to the point then," she said. "So there's this forbidden scroll I never told you about. Opening it comes at great cost, but as it stands, the potential gains outweigh it." Tsunade placed a hand on her apprentice's shoulder and guided her back into the chair.

"What?" Sakura asked. "What scroll?" Her heart was pounding.

"Listen to me carefully now, Sakura. Should you accept this mission, your life will never be the same. And if you play your cards right, neither will mine. The powers in this scroll will give you a chance to change our fates. And rewrite the past."

Sakura's mind was racing. Rewrite the past?

_Could she mean...?_

"Time travel," Sakura whispered, her eyes glazing over with realization.

Tsunade smirked. "Precisely."

It was at that very moment that a resonating bang sounded through the village. An explosion. Both women raced to the window and spotted in the distance, along the wall near the village gates, an enormous cloud of smoke and flames.

"Come with me, quickly," Tsunade hissed, traces of panic appearing in her voice. She led Sakura to a staircase that descended to the lower floors of the tower.

"Time travel?" Sakura repeated, her body growing numb with shock and confusion. "This scroll will send me back in time?"

"We don't have long to discuss the details," Tsunade called over her shoulder. "But yes. If you agree to this mission, you will devote the remainder of your life to it. And sacrifice your entire existence up until this day. The bonds you have made will disappear and must be rebuilt... or not." Tsunade paused when they reached a door, which she unlocked and opened. Behind the door was another flight of stairs leading them down into the dark, lower chambers of the tower.

This was all too much to take in. Time travel! Sakura was trying to wrap her head around the very concept that a scroll containing such powers existed. "What about you? What will happen to you?" Sakura asked hurriedly.

"Well, I don't know. If you fail the mission, I'll end up right here, I suppose," she said as they neared the bottom of the staircase. "I'd much rather be retired, honestly. My hope would be that you find a way to make that happen sooner."

The gears were spinning wildly in Sakura's head.

This world would literally be erased.

As they neared a door at the end of the dark hallway, another explosion sounded, even larger than the last. It was as though an earthquake struck and Sakura pressed her hand to the wall for support.  _The attack is real_ , Sakura realized as fear started coursing through her.  _The village really could perish_.

Tsunade placed her palm on the door and raised her other hand to perform hand seals while muttering words under her breath. Sakura recognized the jutsu as an unlocking seal. The door opened. "Quickly, inside." Tsunade prodded it open and guided Sakura through the entrance.

Once the door was bolted shut behind them, Tsunade spoke again, a grim expression settling on her face. "The fate of our world will be resting on your shoulders. It's quite a burden to bear, but I have faith in you." She turned to the shelves and cabinets lining the concrete walls of the dark room and began rifling through them. "And, I believe that given the opportunity to alter the past, there is someone dear to you who you would save. Am I right?"

Sakura's heart clenched.  _Him._  Why did Tsunade have to bring  _that_  up at a time like this?

Her thoughts grew foggy. Sakura opened her mouth but immediately closed it because she didn't know what to say.

Tsunade returned to Sakura with a box, a vile of liquid, and a scroll. The time travel scroll, Sakura presumed.

_Is this actually happening?_

"Events will play out as they were meant to until you intervene. You may discover that you don't have to change much. Set objectives for yourself and stick to them. Consider what aspects of your past life could mend the present," Tsunade said while rummaging through the medical supply box and pulling out a syringe.

Sakura's mouth was parched. The stress of re-entering her past life would be unbearable. How would she know what to change? How would she decide what objectives to prioritize? But on the other hand, what would become of her if she refused this opportunity altogether?

Just then, another earthquake-like force swept through the village. This time, however, the earthquake wasn't accompanied by an explosion. And this time, it was more vicious and prominent than the last. Sakura struggled to keep her balance and Tsunade held tightly to the items she had brought forward. "Earth style!" Tsunade snarled, and Sakura realized immediately that Tsunade was referring to one of Orochimaru's signature styles of attack. He was using ninjutsu to tunnel through the earth and enter the village from the ground beneath it

"Keep in mind!" Tsunade continued over the violent shaking and the crashing as items tumbled from the shelves and onto the concrete floor. "Keep in mind that each and every decision you make will have a lasting impact on the world as we know it. Do you understand?"

"Yes!" Sakura called over the maddening sounds of glass shattering and the ground rumbling. It was hard to take in the immensity of Tsunade's words, or even focus on her at all. Sakura was now clutching the wall to steady herself.

Tsunade filled the syringe with a pale, blue liquid. And then, with the needle in one hand and the scroll in the other, she turned to face Sakura fully. "Sakura Haruno," she said, her expression grim but stern. "Do you accept this mission?"

"I -," Sakura began. She was struggling to form coherent sentences. What should she say? With all the noise and reverberating explosions, it was hard to even form a coherent  _thought_...

And it was that very realization that prodded Sakura to answer, while shoving aside her internal screams of protest. "...I accept, Tsunade-sama."

Next thing she knew, Sakura was on her knees facing her mentor, the scroll placed in her lap and the syringe poised in Tsunade's hand. "You must understand, before you go, that when you begin your new life, this life will freeze. However, if you die in your new life before it reaches this present day, the power of the scroll will be undone. And this life will resume - except that you will be dead," Tsunade explained.

The wheels were turning in Sakura's mind. "But if I  _do_ make it to this day in my new life –"

"This timeline will be overridden. You, and the rest of the new world, will be free to carry on with life as if this one never existed."

Sakura gulped. She had to survive up until this day in her new life. Three days before her eighteenth birthday.

"And Sakura, the scroll must not fall into the wrong hands. Certain individuals hold the power to undo the spell and likely at the expense of your life."

Sakura nodded stiffly. It was as though her ability to feel emotions was switched off. "Yes, Tsunade-sama," was all she could muster.

The floor continued to shake violently beneath them. "Now, right after I inject you with this syringe, you will open the scroll. Got it?" Sakura dipped her head in understanding, her hands trembling with panic and confusion.  _Is this the right choice?_

"There is something special about you, Sakura," Tsunade said. "I'm sure I'll take you as an apprentice in your new life." She gripped Sakura's forearm with her free hand just as the black criss-crossing marks of the Creation Rebirth technique spiraled down her own arm. Sakura felt a stream of calming, regenerative chakra enter her body.

A sharp, tingling pain spread through her neck.

Tsunade injected the liquid. Instinctively, Sakura pulled open the scroll. Very quickly, the room started melting away. Black spots appeared at the corners of her eyes and the walls caved in and twisted out of proportion as if the natural properties of space and time no longer existed. The ceiling was getting lower and lower, the shelves and cabinets shrinking and dissolving.

And through all this, Sakura's mind was wandering. Where was Orochimaru now? Where were her family and friends?

"Sakura," came Tsunade's distant, hazy voice.

What about  _him_?

Sakura used all of her energy to focus on the face of her mentor, which was being obscured by rapidly expanding black spots. "You might not create a perfect world, Sakura. But whatever you create, I'm betting that it will sure as hell be better than the one we've got now."

Sakura felt a sudden, manic urge to laugh. Tsunade Senju, famously regarded in casinos across the ninja world as the biggest loser, was betting on Sakura to save the world.

What on earth did she get herself into?

"Good luck, Sakura."

Everything went black.


	2. Team Seven Reunited

 

Sakura woke to the warmth of the morning sun on her face.

Her eyes fluttered open to reveal that she was in her room curled up in bed. Sunbeams were shining through the open window and a soothing summer breeze sent a pleasing chill across her exposed skin. But all contented feelings were staunched when Sakura's eyes flickered in the direction of the night table.

Her framed picture of Team Seven was gone, Sakura realized with a surge of panic. And then, with a second surge of panic, she remembered that this was not her bedroom anymore.

Sakura shot out of bed and instantly noticed that her body was far lighter, far easier to lift, but also that her arms didn't give her the leverage she expected them to. She spluttered, just as a long strand of hair flopped in front of her face.

A…  _long_  strand?

That was when her mind was flooded with memories of recent events. The war. The scroll. "Tsunade-sama!" she yelled, springing to her feet and reaching for the knife she always kept under her pillow only to find that it wasn't there.

_Thud._

A familiar scroll tumbled off her bed and onto the hardwood floor.

The reality of it all began to sink in.

Sakura dashed to the body-length mirror on the opposite side of the room and when her eyes laid on what was reflected in its surface, her breath caught in her throat.

Scrawny legs. Flat chest. A face that hadn't quite grown into its huge, green eyes and broad forehead. Long and matted pink hair.

This was unreal. She really  _was_  a younger version of herself. Five or six years younger, at least.

In a daze, she returned to the bed and picked the scroll up off the floor. After a quick examination, she deduced that it was indeed the time travel scroll. It worked. It actually  _worked._ This wasn't a dream. She had been carried back in time to save Konoha.

That was when she remembered Tsunade's parting words:

_And Sakura, the scroll must not get into the wrong hands. Certain individuals hold the power to undo the spell and likely at the expense of your life._

Right. She needed to protect it.

Sakura immediately dismissed the idea of keeping the scroll on her person. It would make her vulnerable. She needed a safe place to hide it. But after a quick glance around the room, Sakura realized that she hardly had any safekeeping options. She made a mental note to look into purchasing something jutsu-resistant. But in the meantime, she needed to think of a place that no one would bother checking...

Hastily, Sakura opened her underwear drawer and shoved the scroll inside. She made a hand seal and cast a Substitution jutsu over the scroll, transforming it into a pair of red underwear. Now unless she had some kind of perverted stalker, the scroll was safe. For now.

Her relief was short-lived.

Immediately after performing the jutsu, Sakura's breathing hitched and the knees of her skinny legs buckled slightly. In that moment she realized that her chakra reserve was much smaller than it had been, well, what felt like moments ago. However slight, the physiological repercussions of chakra depletion were already present in her: increased heart rate, tired limbs, cold extremities… And all thanks to a basic Substitution jutsu that she could have performed in her sleep in her previous life.

 _You've gotta be kidding me..._ What the hell did Tsunade  _honestly_  expect her to accomplish in a state like this?

Sakura made a second mental note to do some intense training. As soon as possible.

But on a positive note, her prized skill in chakra control seemed to be intact. She just had much less chakra to work with.

She glanced around the room, her heart thrumming restlessly. What next? Her mind was still hazy and she was on the cusp of a full-blown hyperventilation.  _Focus, Sakura. What do you need to do now?_

Well, according to Sakura's ninja instincts, first and foremost she needed a line of defense. She started scanning the room for her supply of weapons.

Instantly, she caught sight of a small weapon pouch on her desk. She rushed over and snapped it open. A meager ten shuriken and single kunai knife were inside.

Sakura gritted her teeth _. How on earth did I ever function with so few of these?_

She scoured the room, rummaging through the drawers and shelves but came out empty-handed. But realistically, Sakura didn't have much use for a stockpile of weapons back when she was at the Academy (or so she had once naively thought).

She would have to purchase some. And medical supplies.

But then it occurred to her that if she really  _was_  just an Academy kid again, she probably didn't have much money. Assuming she was a young teenager and hadn't started going out on missions, her only income was an allowance from her parents.

Sakura made yet another mental note to get herself a part-time job. Ideally, at the hospital.

So, what now?

Well for one thing, she needed to get rid of all of this damn hair.

Now, having bright pink hair certainly had its assets. As a medical ninja, it made her easily recognizable on a battlefront. And, not to mention, it was hard for people to forget her after only a single meeting (which was particularly useful when she met new boys). But  _long_  pink hair? She might as well paint a target on her back. And maintaining this much hair was time-consuming and impractical.

So without further delay, Sakura grabbed the sole kunai from her weapon holster with one hand, gripped onto her hair with the other hand, and ran the blade across the strands, severing about ten inches off the length. When she let her hair drop back into place, it fell just above her shoulders.  _Ah. Much better._

Sakura proceeded to sweep the hair from the ground, clean up in the bathroom, and pull on one of her old, red training dresses. And  _damn_  did that ever feel weird. She'd tossed away her old dresses ages ago, and she quickly remembered why she switched to a sleeveless style when she was older. The sleeves on this dress and its thick, heavy material were going to drive her insane.

Once Sakura was ready, she figured she would head downstairs and try to get a sense of what day it was. And then she would start planning. Setting objectives, as Tsunade put it.

With a spike of adrenaline, she grabbed her head protector, wallet, and weapon pouch from her desk and went downstairs. As she neared the main floor, she heard a familiar voice from the kitchen call, "Sakura! Is that you?"

Sakura froze at the base of the stairs. It was her mother. Since she moved out to her own apartment, she didn't see much of her parents. And what felt like moments ago, in Sakura's old life, her parents were locked in this very house, hiding from the war and destruction sweeping through the village.

Sakura's mind was flooded with emotions. Her parents were safe. And they were right here.

Her mother appeared around the corner and before she thought better of it, Sakura threw her arms around her. "Mom, I am so happy to see you!" she cried, struggling to keep her composure.

"Sakura!" her mother exclaimed in response, her green eyes narrowing. "Your HAIR!"

Sakura let her arms fall and blinked in confusion. "My... oh." Right. She'd just cut her hair for, as far as her mother knew, the first time in her life.

Her mother, Mebuki, smirked, her demeanor shifting. "Well, I guess it's only fitting to have a brand new look for your first day as a ninja," she said while examining one of Sakura's newly-chopped strands. "Come on. Let me touch up the ends while you have your breakfast."

"First day?"

Mebuki rolled her eyes and shot Sakura a knowing smile. "Don't play dumb with me. It's all you've been talking about for weeks."

Sakura ogled at her mother for a moment before stammering out, "Yes, of... of course! My first day..." She entered the kitchen and let the words sink in.

If what her mother said was true, today Sakura would be assigned to her team. To Team Seven.

That's right. They were here. Her  _boys_ were here! Naruto, still young, brimming with positive energy, and oblivious to the many years of violence and wars that would befall him. Kakashi, protective and collected, and totally unaware of the evil that would infiltrate the relationships among his soon-to-be disciples.

And Sasuke.

 _Sasuke._  Here, in the village. Lost, confused, and moody, sure, but untainted. Genuinely  _good._ And, above all, not an enemy of the Hidden Leaf Village.

It was so much to grasp. Consumed by new feelings of anxiousness and curiosity, Sakura wolfed down her food, thanked her mother for breakfast, grabbed her things, and bolted out the door.

***

It was quite surreal to walk through the lively, crowded roads of Konoha when what felt like only hours before, these very streets were silent and abandoned. Sakura passed shops with doors left ajar and parents scrambling after children who were darting through the throng of passersby.

She neared the Yamanaka flower shop and saw a much younger version of Ino, her best friend and rival, walking out the front door. Her blue eyes landed on Sakura immediately.

"Sakura!" she called, followed by "SAKURA?! What have you done?" Ino approached in what appeared to be a state of total shock, gaping at Sakura's head. "You... you cut it?"

Sakura blinked.  _Oops._  She didn't think the stupid haircut would matter this much. "Um... I, uh, yes. I figured I would try out a brand new look for my first day as a ninja," she said, reciting her mother's words and trying to force some confidence into her tone.

Ino eyed her suspiciously. "Trying to get  _him_  to notice you, huh?" she asked bitterly. "Well, it isn't going to work. Everyone  _knows_  that Sasuke prefers girls with long hair!" She tossed her long, blonde ponytail back with a flick of her wrist for emphasis, a triumphant grin on her face.

Sakura contained her chuckle. She'd forgotten how petty she and Ino had once been. "We'll just have to see," Sakura tried with a sly smirk, figuring there wasn't any harm in playing along.

Then she walked with Ino to the Academy. Ino, who seemed a little thrown off by Sakura's lack of outlandish competitiveness, did most of the talking, filling her in about the hair products and cute boys that she may not be aware of. Sakura nodded and offered words of encouragement at all the right times, but as they neared the school, Sakura was struck by a powerful realization.

It felt like a game, this chit-chat with Ino. This fake young teenage girl persona. But this was her life now. She was trapped in this body, surrounded by these people, and there was no going back. And no one to ask for guidance or help. For all she knew, Tsunade was currently drunk in a small-town casino, gambling away all her money.

In fact, Sakura was ninety-nine percent sure that was exactly what Tsunade was doing.

When they arrived at the Academy, Sakura told Ino she needed to stop somewhere before going to class.

"Are you okay, Sakura?" Ino asked and folding her arms across her chest. "You aren't as... talkative as you usually are. Are you sick?"

 _Damn_ , Sakura thought. She was certain she'd been doing a good job maintaining her facade. "Ah, um... Just a little nervous. Big day ahead of us, right?" She feigned a smile.

Ino cast her a disbelieving glance. "You realize that I get first dibs on the seat next to Sasuke, right?" she asked, as if this piece of information would prompt Sakura to change her mind.

"Yeah, I guess you do," Sakura said, unsure of what else to say. Ino shrugged and bounded off to the classroom.

Sakura started wandering the Academy halls. She desperately needed to be alone. She needed to think.

So far today she'd played along with events as they'd unfolded. Shouldn't she be doing something better with her time? Something productive? She had a powerful insight that she ought to take advantage of. Saving the village from its future destruction needed careful and long-winded preparation. The sooner she set some clear objectives for herself, the better.

But where was she supposed to begin? Did it make sense to join Team Seven and later bring her teammates into this mess when they were strong enough to help her? But how would she ever get them to do as she asked? How would she, a young home-grown Genin of Konoha, manage to convince  _anyone_  in the village that she knew anything about the world outside of it?

_Bump._

Caught off guard, Sakura jumped back and reached in her weapon holster for her kunai, only to realize that she had walked into none other than Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei!" she exclaimed, immediately returning the knife back into the pouch strapped to her leg. She faced a familiar, scrutinizing look, with Kakashi's visible eyebrow shooting up towards his head protector. A frown had surely formed somewhere beneath his mask.

_Gosh, he hasn't aged a bit!_

Kakashi folded his arms, gazing at the pouch she was returning the kunai to. "You know of me, huh?" he asked slowly.

 _Whoops._  She forgot that he technically wasn't her sensei yet. Her mentor and teacher for the past five years, one of Sakura's primary confidants, and the man who shaped her into the ninja she was didn't even know her.

Her chest tightened.

"I've heard great things about you, sensei," she said with a small bow. "You are one of the most highly respected Jōnin around here." She offered a smile and prayed to the Gods that he would believe her.

"I see," he said, raising an eyebrow. "What's your name?"

"Haruno. Sakura Haruno," she said.

Kakashi nodded, carefully studying her face. "Shouldn't you be with the other Genin?" he asked. "Today you will be assigned a team."

"Yes I... suppose I should be," she mumbled. "I guess I'll be going then." She turned on her heel and stalked off towards the classroom.

As she walked away, Kakashi Hatake watched her retreating figure. He was aware that a Genin named Sakura Haruno would be assigned to his team but he hardly knew a thing about her. He had been far too preoccupied learning about his other new disciples: the prestigious Sasuke Uchiha and the trouble-making Naruto Uzumaki.

As far as he knew, Sakura Haruno was nothing but a studious, straight-A student with minimal real world ninja experience.

But if that really was the case, why was her immediate reflex to draw a weapon when she'd bumped into him? Maybe there was more to this girl than he thought.

And maybe the kid was just a big bundle of nerves today.

Either way, he decided he would keep a close eye on her.

***

In a daze, Sakura threw open the classroom door and walked in. The room was packed with students and Iruka was standing at the front, assembling his papers and preparing for his introductory speech. The young Genin were starting to hop down from the desks and take their seats for the lecture. Sakura scanned the room for an empty spot that she could sneak to unnoticed.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" a familiar voice rang out.

_Oh no._

"I'VE SAVED YOU A SEAT!"

 _Leave it to Naruto to blow my cover._  Sakura spotted the grinning blonde boy at the far end of the room, beckoning for her to join him like she was the only thing in the world that mattered.

And she couldn't help her mood lifting at the sight. The boy she'd come to see as her brother and dear friend was here. He was safe. He was  _happy_. As she approached him at the desk, she felt like she was floating through a dream, and her ear-to-ear smile was impossible to suppress. Seeing Naruto, the hyperactive boy jumping up in down in a bright, orange jumpsuit, was the greatest thing that had happened to her since she woke up. In fact, this small moment of pleasure was enough to distract her from her time-travelling predicament.

That was when she heard a loud gasp.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed. "Where is your  _hair_?!"

The entire room silenced. All heads turned in her direction. Then the classroom was filled with murmuring.  _"Why did she do that?" "She looks terrible!" "Trying to look tough, huh?" "Maybe her hair fell out?" "Maybe she's BALDING!"_

Sakura clenched her jaw and stalked over to the seat beside Naruto, deliberately tuning out all of the chatter.  _For the love of_ God _, how superficial these people are!_  Is this really what the ninjas of Konoha cared about at this age? A silly haircut?

Only once she'd taken her seat did the classroom's volume resume normal levels. Naruto was sitting on her right, and she noticed a young, feeble-looking Hinata with a dark bob-cut sitting behind her. She started scanning her surroundings, taking in the faces of her friends. It was quite a lot to process. They were all so much smaller. And  _relaxed_. The carefree air wafting through the room was so refreshing yet so  _unnatural._ None of these kids really knew of the dangers that lurked beyond Konoha's borders.

"Where is your hair?" Naruto repeated, but she barely heard him because something else caught her attention.

Her eyes were locked on the back of the boy sitting directly in front of her.

 _He_  was here. Wearing a signature blue shirt with his family crest on the back. No sword protruding from his waistline. No curse mark on his neck. No scratch through the Leaf symbol on his head protector designating him a rogue ninja and a traitor.

_Sasuke._

"Hey, Billboard Brow!" screeched a familiar, obnoxious voice. Sakura jumped. Ino, who was sitting next to Sasuke, had taken notice of the direction of Sakura's fixated gaze. "Take your eyes off my man, would you? I'm sure he doesn't want you drooling all over his back!"

Sakura blinked several times and tried to reorient herself. She turned and noticed Naruto's crest-fallen expression. And Ino's triumphant grin. A few others in the surrounding seats had turned towards the scene at the sound of Ino's voice.

Sakura felt defensive. "I was looking at the blackboard, Ino- _Pig_ ," she said, trying out the old nickname she'd assigned her rival. "If you'd pay attention to something besides a certain  _classmate_  of ours every now and then, maybe you'd clue in that Iruka-sensei is trying to begin the lecture."

Ino and Naruto's jaws dropped. Before either of them had a chance to speak, Sakura added, in a quieter tone, "And Naruto, I'm sorry for taking so long to answer your question. I cut my hair because... long hair just gets in the way."

Naruto squinted at her in confusion, probably puzzling over what exactly long hair got in the way  _of_. Ino was visibly fuming. And, to Sakura's surprise, Sasuke turned around to look her over. He didn't seem particularly pleased by anything Sakura had just said with how his dark eyes were narrowed and his mouth was pulled into a frown.

Of all weird things to happen that day, this was by far the weirdest. God, the last time she'd stared into these very eyes, they were stained red, filled with real malice and blood thirst, and utterly emotionless. So, needless to say, a glare from  _this_ Sasuke was nothing she couldn't handle. Sakura had no trouble holding her ground and returning the hard, cold stare, which she hoped communicated something along the lines of:  _Turn around and pay attention!_

To Sakura's relief, Iruka cleared his throat and addressed the class only moments later. Sasuke, Naruto, Ino and the others turned back around to face the front of the class.

 _Damn it_ , Sakura thought. It was dawning on her that the simple act of cutting her hair had changed the past – the present – or whatever this was. And as a result, the future could change too. She needed to be very selective about her words and actions because each one would have rippling effects on the rest of her new life.

How would she live like this? How would she ever make decisions if she was so conscious of the impacts of every word she said and of her very existence?

Sakura realized that she had zoned out from Iruka's introductory speech and only tuned back in when he was announcing the teams. Soon he reached Team Seven.

"Naruto Uzumaki. Sakura Haruno –"

"YES!" Naruto cheered.

"– and Sasuke Uchiha."

"NO!" Naruto cried.

Team Seven was officially formed. For the second time.

**Photo Credit:** wolf08, http://wolf08.tumblr.com/post/162912810740/god-the-last-time-shed-stared-into-these-very


	3. The Bet

Iruka dismissed the class of new Genin for a one-hour lunch break before the teams would be introduced to their leaders. Sakura figured that would give her enough time to slip into the village and get a sense of how many weapons and supplies she could currently afford. She may even have enough time to drop by the hospital and ask whether they had any part-time job openings.

"Oh Sa-ku-ra!" came Naruto's sing-song voice from somewhere behind her. Sakura froze in her tracks, took a deep breath, and turned to face him.

Naruto, who had been jogging after Sakura, skidded to a halt when he reached her. "Well... since we're on the same team and all, I thought maybe we could have lunch together and get to know each other better. What do you say?" A bashful smile danced on his lips.

Sakura felt her own smile sprout. She had no doubt that her former self would have rejected Naruto without a second thought. But now things were different.

Over the years, she'd grown to understand why this guy behaved the way he did. Yes, he was annoying and attention-seeking, but only because he was lonely and had been shunned by the village throughout his formative childhood years. He just wanted someone to notice him.

And right now, that someone he wanted attention from was Sakura. His eyes were twinkling as he stared at her in anticipation.

Sakura chuckled and shook her head. "I was going to head into the village to run some errands," she said. Naruto's face fell. "But you are welcome to tag along if you'd like."

He perked up instantly. Naruto jumped up and down with excitement. "Yes, YES!" he exclaimed. "I mean… that sounds  _way_  less lame than hanging around the Academy for lunch, huh?" he added with what he probably thought was a cool, indifferent eye-roll (but the look was spoiled by his smiling and fidgeting). Sakura laughed and beckoned for him to follow her.

***

Not long after, once they neared the edge of the Academy grounds, Naruto said, "You know, Sakura-chan, I thought you'd want to hang out with that jerk who we're supposed to be teammates with now. People always follow him around even though he hates everyone."

Sakura shrugged. "I have errands to do," she said absently.

But then she let Naruto's remark sink in and had a change of heart. A quick detour was in order.

_Maybe we can all start things off on a better note this time…_

She stopped walking. "Actually, on second thought Naruto, I think we should find him," she said.

Naruto blanched. "Who?  _Sasuke?_ Why?!"

Sakura folded her arms. "Well, for the same reason  _we're_ spending our lunch break together. If we're stuck on the same team from here on out, we can at least try to be friends."

"That sounds like the worst idea ever," Naruto grumbled. "He'll never want to be friends with us." But then he got a mischievous glint in his eye. "But you know," Naruto added thoughtfully, "I wouldn't mind putting that jerk in his place before he starts thinking he can walk all over me."

"Er, that's not –"

"It's settled then! Let's find the jerk!" Naruto bellowed and stomping back towards the Academy.

Sakura covered her face and exhaled deeply, hoping beyond hope that her attempt to curb the ferocity of Naruto and Sasuke's rivalry before it began wouldn't completely backfire.

***

They found Sasuke hiding among the crates in the empty storage area, leaning against a windowsill. He was gazing out at the Academy grounds with a faraway expression on his face.

One look at him told Sakura that he didn't want to be disturbed. But it was too late now.

"There the bastard is," Naruto muttered before yelling out, "Sasuke! It's team bonding time!"

Sasuke glanced at them, his expression cold and calculating. "What?" he muttered, raising his eyebrows and eyeing them suspiciously. Sakura's stomach flipped for reasons she couldn't explain.

She cleared her throat. "I thought we should all get to know each other better since we'll be on a team from here on out," she clarified while Naruto nodded at her side.

"Ah," he answered and averting his gaze dismissively. "Thanks, but I'd rather not."

He seemed uneasy, Sakura noticed, with the rigid way he held himself. You see, Sasuke was just as lonely and isolated as Naruto was, except that he coped by embracing his loneliness and avoiding people (which was a sharp contrast to Naruto's coping methods indeed).

"What?!" Naruto bellowed and raising a fist in Sasuke's direction. "Look, Sakura-chan and I came all the way over here to have lunch with you, just for you to tell us to  _leave?_  Why's that? You'd better have a good excuse!"

"It's fine, Naruto. Let's go," Sakura tried, but he didn't seem to hear her.

"I don't need to explain myself to you," Sasuke said coolly and keeping his eyes locked on the open window.

"Fine then! How about our fists do the talking instead?" Naruto assumed a battle stance and Sakura rubbed her temples. This boy was just looking for any excuse to fight. And there was nothing she could say to stop him now.

"Bring it on, bastard!" Then Naruto lunged at his opponent, forcing Sasuke to leap through the window to dodge. But Naruto was in pursuit and before Sakura knew it, the two of them were through the window and out of sight.

_Well, I tried._

She could only hope that these scraps would serve as good character-builders. Because she highly doubted there was anything she could do to stop them.

So… what now?

Sakura glanced at her pocket watch and noticed that she still had forty-five minutes left in the lunch break – just enough time to run her errands as she originally planned.

***

But to Sakura's dismay, just about every weapon and medical product that caught her eye was priced way over her budget. So were the devices she needed to protect the time travel scroll.

She spotted a small safe that claimed to be jutsu-resistant in a ninja equipment shop. It would make an ideal hiding place for the scroll, but it would cost her every penny she had and more. Sakura stormed out, ignoring stares from the much older and tougher-looking ninjas in the shop, and made her way to the hospital. She still had twenty minutes left. And she desperately needed an income of some sort since her team wouldn't encounter missions with any worthwhile profit for quite some time.

But Sakura's luck didn't improve. The receptionist wouldn't even let her  _speak_  to any human resources personnel, claiming that she was "not of age to work in such a serious, grown-up environment." Sakura was tempted to show off her advanced knowledge and skills to the receptionist right there on the spot, but she resisted the urge for that would surely raise questions that no one would believe her answers to. The receptionist did, however, take Sakura's name and number and promise to distribute them among the doctors who may be interested in a volunteer assistant.

Sakura's spirits had fallen considerably as she trudged back towards the Academy with one minute to spare.

_It doesn't matter if I'm late anyways. I'll probably still get there ages before Kakashi-sensei._

Sakura arrived at the classroom she and the other members of Team Seven had been assigned to assemble in. She pulled open the sliding door, took a step inside, and then her ninja instincts were on full alert. Something was plummeting towards her head.

It didn't take long for her mind to put two and two together.

_Naruto's eraser prank._

Sakura swiped at the falling object with more force than she initially intended, and with a  _crack_ , sliced the chalkboard eraser clean down the middle, ruining Naruto's prank on their new sensei.

"Whoa," Naruto said in disbelief. "Those are some pretty intense reflexes, Sakura-chan." He was standing only a few feet away. Sasuke was watching the scene play out with his elbows propped up on one of the desks and his chin resting on his hands. He looked completely unfazed. And as expected, Kakashi was nowhere in sight.

"Sorry, Naruto," Sakura mumbled while taking a seat. "I'm feeling a little off I guess."

Naruto didn't seem to hear her. He was grabbing a fresh eraser from the ledge of the chalkboard. "I don't mean to start a fight or anything Sakura-chan, but you ruined my prank for the new sensei, so I'm upset with you," he said matter-of-factly while positioning the new eraser on the top ledge of the door in hope that it would successfully land on the next target's head.

"Naruto, our sensei is a Jōnin," drawled Sasuke who was making no attempt to conceal his annoyance. "If  _she_  didn't fall for it, what makes you think he will?"

 _Really?_ Sakura's defensive spirit roused.

"Wanna bet?" Sakura chimed in with a smirk. She had quite an unfair advantage since she already knew Kakashi would fall for the prank. But her desire to prove Sasuke wrong outweighed her guilt over cheating.

He turned to look at her, his eyebrows raised. "Are you serious?" he asked in a disbelieving tone.

"Yes."

Sasuke paused. "What does the winner get?"

Sakura rolled her eyes.  _Typical._  "How about the loser owes them one," she said. "The winner decides what."

He shrugged. "Whatever."

Taking Sasuke's flippant remark as an affirmation, Sakura turned away to hide her budding grin. It would be satisfying to beat him.

Meanwhile, Naruto was chuckling from the doorway. "Oh! He's coming, he's coming! Shh!"

They all stared at the door in anticipation, and soon a hand grabbed its edge to pull it open. They watched the eraser descend towards Kakashi's head as if in slow motion...

_Here it comes! Sweet victory is –_

_Swish! Crack!_

"Huh?" said Kakashi while glancing up at the ceiling.

"What?!" Naruto and Sakura yelled in unison. To their surprise, remnants of the eraser were splayed across the classroom floor and a kunai was embedded in the wall just above where Kakashi was standing.

Sakura pieced it all together and rounded on the smirking Uchiha sitting beside her. "You  _cheater!_ " she hissed.

"You never specified any rules against cheating," he answered.

Sakura rubbed her temples.  _Karma is a bitch._

Naruto was fuming. "Why is everybody trying to ruin my brilliant prank?!" he cried while dropping to his knees and staring up at the ceiling for dramatic effect.

Kakashi looked dumbfounded. "My first impression of you guys is... you're a bunch of idiots," he said.

Sakura shook her head _. I guess some things will never change._

***

Kakashi ushered the new team to the roof of the Academy for some fresh air and because "you don't learn the important things in classrooms." He instructed his three students to take their seats on the wide, concrete steps and took his own perch across from them on the metal rail at the edge of the roof. "All right Team Seven," he said, "now I'd like each of you to say a few words about yourself."

"Like what kind of words?" Naruto asked.

"Hm… How about the things you like, things you dislike, your hobbies, dreams for the future... Words like that."

"Wait, wait I don't get it. You go first, sensei."

Sakura could hardly supress her snigger. Naruto's older self wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed either. But apparently he had come a long way.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Fine then," he said. "My name is Kakashi Hatake. As for things I like and dislike? I haven't really thought about it. My dream for the future... I can't tell you that. And my hobbies? I have lots of them."

_Classic._

But that was when it dawned on her that she would have to give a spiel about herself. Her heart began to drum.

_I can't tell them the complete truth and risk dropping any hints that I'm from the future. No way._

"Okay, you on the right. You're first."

_But… I don't want to sign myself up for living a lie for the rest of my life._

A fake persona would surely crack with time, especially given how perceptive her sensei was.

Naruto sat up straight and started fiddling with his head protector. "Okay so as you all know, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen, especially the kind that Iruka-sensei buys for me at Ichiraku. My hobby is training because I'm going to be the greatest Hokage any of you have ever seen! And then people will stop disrespecting me and treat me like I'm somebody important!"

_I'll have to be vague. I don't have any other choice._

Kakashi was nodding slowly. He folded his arms across his army green Jōnin vest. "All right then," he said. "Who's next? Ah, how about Sakura Haruno. The girl who prefers wandering hallways to being in class."

"Ha ha," she mumbled. Still unsure of how exactly she would go about this, Sakura opened her mouth and just let the words tumble out. "Yeah, I'm Sakura Haruno. My likes and dislikes... Well, I like sparring. And I hate, um... feeling inadequate. Er... My hobby is sharpening my medical ninjutsu. I guess I have a dream, or a goal... And it's to keep the village safe. And to do that, I need to defeat a person who has... taken someone important from me. So I need to get… to get stronger."

She drew a breath, slammed her mouth shut, and nodded curtly to indicate that she was finished.

_That was vague enough… right?_

Several long seconds of silence followed. Sakura felt all of their eyes on her and began doubting her resolve. Did she say something wrong? Did she expose too much?

"You are  _so_  cool, Sakura-chan!" Naruto breathed, his eyes wide.

"Medical ninjutsu?" Kakashi questioned, eyebrows raised.

 _Oh._ No Genin fresh out of the Academy should have the chakra control to practice medical ninjutsu. "I've picked up some skills in my spare time," was her lame cover-up.

"Hm," Kakashi responded. He was clearly unconvinced and Sakura had a feeling that he was saving his other follow-up questions for later.  _Great._  "All right, next."

Sasuke nodded. "Right. My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I dislike a lot of things and I don't particularly like anything. What I have is not a dream because I am going to make it a reality. I am going to avenge my clan by killing the man responsible for its demise."

Another silence ensued.

As usual, Naruto was the one to break it.

He appeared to be consumed by a newfound whirl of emotions. "Rrrgh!" he groaned while standing up and turning to face his teammates. "I can't believe this! I've got  _two_  avengers on my team!" Sakura's train of thought came to a sudden halt. An avenger?  _Her_? "This doesn't make you cool, Sasuke. It was only cool when Sakura-chan said it," he added.

The weight of Naruto's words was a lot to take in. Sakura had always pictured avengers as being cold, self-isolated, and obsessed with revenge – likely because  _Sasuke_  had become something of an avenger poster boy.

But maybe there was more to it than that.

Maybe it had more to do with this persistent  _restlessness,_ this constant urge to set objectives and do something before it was too late. Maybe it had more to do with how she knew she needed to stop Orochimaru from destroying the village. And her fear that she would never be strong enough to do so.

Instinctively, Sakura's eyes sought out her avenger teammate because maybe she was finally starting to get a proper sense of how it felt… of how he –

She regretted the decision when she realized he was already staring at her.

His expression was unreadable, however, his dark eyes held no traces of annoyance or condescending (as they often did in Sakura's former life). Not giving herself a moment to wallow in embarrassment, Sakura turned away.

Kakashi went on with his opening speech about how sixty-six percent of all the Academy graduates would be dropped from the program. He finished by warning them not to eat breakfast the following morning.

"WHY?!" Naruto hollered.

"If you eat breakfast, you'll puke," Kakashi replied bluntly. After some parting words, he formed a few hand seals and disappeared in a burst of leaves.

Naruto stomped off, infuriated that he was being restrained from enjoying his favourite part of the day besides lunch and dinner.

Sakura resolved to squeeze in a few hours of training before she returned to her parents' house for dinner. She didn't have many weapons at her disposal, but what she really needed to work on was building her strength and testing the limits of her new, frail body. Sakura made a mental note to practice her chakra control and basic medical ninjutsu. After all, if she was going to impress the hospital workers enough to land a part-time job, she needed to ensure she had the skills to do so.

"Sakura."

She was stopped in her tracks by a voice behind her. Sakura spun around to find Sasuke standing there with his arms crossed and his eyebrows furrowed.

She struggled to hide her surprise. Sakura had once been so fixated on Sasuke's every move that there was no way he could have snuck up on her like this.

"Sasuke," she responded in a similar flat tone.

He looked uncomfortable. "Keep the village safe from what?" he asked after a short pause.

It took Sakura a moment to understand just what he was asking.

 _Damn it._ She needed to deflect the question. "Isn't that a bit personal? I mean, I hardly know you."

_At least, that's what you're supposed to think._

A muscle in his jaw twitched. "Fine," Sasuke said and averting his gaze. "So I'm guessing you won't tell me who you want to defeat either?"

Sakura resisted the urge to smirk.  _Now that a potential murder is involved, Sasuke is interested in me. Go figure._

If she was honest with herself, Sakura was definitely getting a kick out of leaving him dark as he had done to her on numerous occasions in her past life.

This might not be the same Sasuke – yet – but there was still some bitterness within her. She had loved him and he had known it. And that only made his betrayal and their attempts to kill each other that much harder to bear.

She turned away, unable to look at him any longer. "I don't have a reason to tell you anything," she said. But then she tried to lighten the atmosphere by adding, "Unless this is what you want for winning the bet."

A moment passed. And then Sasuke said, "No. I'll save that for later."

Sakura frowned and when she glanced over her shoulder again, he was gone.


	4. Bell Test

Sakura was in pain all over.

The muscles in her scrawny arms and legs ached as she dragged herself out of bed and into her bathroom. She'd spent the night at the training grounds and had focused on basic strength-building exercises to get a feel for her muscular capacity. During her training, she had lifted and thrown several boulders and fallen trees, which, to her disappointment, proved to be extremely difficult feats now. She also noticed that those exercises had depleted her chakra so quickly that she couldn't have healed her sore muscles with medical ninjutsu even if she wanted to.

Feeling disgruntled, Sakura got dressed and prepared her weapon holster for a day of training with her new team. Before she left, she spared a quick peek in her underwear drawer for the time travel scroll currently disguised as a pair of red panties. Upon spotting it, she felt a wave of reassurance.

 _Well at least I seem to be doing_ something _right so far._

***

As she made her way to the training grounds, Sakura found herself consumed by thoughts of her mission. She hadn't sat down to formulate a plan yet. But what good would that do? Her body was weak. Her chakra reserve was significantly smaller than it used to be. What use would a plan be if she didn't have the ability to see it through?

And what good would a plan be without realistic goals?

Sakura had a lot of lofty goals for her new life, but how she was to achieve any of them was beyond her. She needed to prevent Orochimaru from launching a war on the village in almost five years from now. Also, she needed to stop Sasuke from betraying the village and joining forces with that corrupted snake. Because, hurt feelings aside, Sasuke's future self was one of the most dangerous threats to the Leaf Village.

The most surefire way of achieving both of those things was to kill Orochimaru. The problem was that he was a twisted genius, a powerhouse, and was probably immortal.

_Okay._

Sakura also couldn't overlook how much intel she had gained on the Akatsuki in her previous life – the evil organization of which villains like Sasuke's clan-massacring brother were a part.

But it wasn't like she could do anything about the Akatsuki on her own.

Sakura's spirits were falling. Even at her full strength, Sakura knew she was an average ninja at best, save some exceptional skills in medical ninjutsu. But now she hardly even had  _those_ skills. So what was she to do?

She noticed she had arrived at the designated meeting place –a tree-lined, grassy clearing in one of Konoha's training grounds. None of her teammates were in sight.

 _Looks like I'm the first one here,_ Sakura thought while plopping herself down onto the cool, dewy grass. She rested her head in her hands. Well, in the short term, it was no question that she needed to build her strength. She needed to train. And if they were to ever be of use to her in the future (in other words, if she ever needed their help in achieving her goals), so did her teammates.

Naruto and Sasuke arrived shortly after. The three of them exchanged tired nods, and Naruto, who looked exhausted, sat down next to Sakura and Sasuke stood somewhere off to the side. Sakura, who was the only one aware of Kakashi's tendency to be extremely late for everything, allowed her mind to continue puzzling over how she would go about completing her mission.

After what felt like an hour of thinking, Sakura concluded that, for now, she would  _go with the flow._  She didn't want to interfere with her teammates' skills development. In the meantime she would train rigorously, redevelop her own skills, and gather as much information as she could from within the village before taking action. Taking action too soon, she figured, might cause more harm than good if it wasn't strategically planned and thoroughly researched.

Sakura straightened up, feeling her first proper rush of relief since she'd travelled through time. Even though she still didn't have a plan for achieving anything tangible, at least she now knew how to justify her lack of action.

Kakashi arrived two hours after Sakura first sat herself down on the grass. "Sorry about that! A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way," he drawled while feigning an innocent expression.

"What?! There's no way that would make you  _this_ late!" Naruto bellowed. Sakura sighed, having learned long ago that complaining about Kakashi's tardiness had absolutely no influence on it.

"All right, let's get down to business," he said while ignoring Naruto's comment and extracting a few objects from his weapon pouch. He placed a clock on the tree stump behind him and pulled out a pair of gleaning, silver bells.

_That's right! The bell test!_

Struck by a wave of giddy nostalgia, Sakura realized that they were about to take Kakashi's signature test of teamwork (that was twisted and defied all logic but was pretty effective).

"The objective of the bell test is to steal these two bells from me before lunch. If you manage to take one successfully, I will provide you with lunch. If you don't, I'll tie you to one of these tree stumps so you can watch the other two while they eat. Any questions?"

Naruto apparently decided that now was the right time to strike.

He ran forward and aimed a punch at Kakashi, who vanished and reappeared behind Naruto, pinning his hands behind his back. "Easy Naruto," Kakashi said. "I haven't even said 'go' yet. You can use any means necessary, including your weapons. Okay, I've said enough! GO!"

The four of them scattered.

***

_Go with the flow, go with the flow._

With much willpower, Sakura resisted the urge to interfere with her teammates', particularly Naruto's, flawed battle tactics.

She watched patiently from the bushes while said knucklehead launched an extremely obvious attack on Kakashi with his newly-mastered Shadow Clone jutsu. She watched him endure Kakashi's "One Thousand Years of Death" technique (a swift, painful poke to where the light don't shine), and then fall for a booby trap, leaving him suspended from a tree branch by the ankles.

Then she watched as Sasuke attacked Kakashi from the bushes with a barrage of shuriken, only to unveil that the Kakashi he attacked was a substitution – a log, to be precise – and now Sasuke had given away his position. Sasuke took off through the trees and Sakura detected that Kakashi was pursuing him. Once they were a safe distance away, she climbed out of the bushes and approached Naruto, who was still dangling from the tree.

"Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed when he caught sight of her.

Sakura pressed a finger to her lips. "Shh! Naruto, Kakashi-sensei could be hiding nearby," she hissed, though she knew their sensei was long gone in pursuit of their teammate. Honestly, she just wanted Naruto to take it down a couple of notches.

"Oh!" Naruto gasped, also pressing a finger to his lips and nodding vigorously. Sakura snapped the rope just above his ankles with her kunai, sending him plummeting towards the ground, and he braced the fall with a clumsy roll. While Naruto was untangling his legs from the rope, Sakura collected her knife and the weapons lodged in the log Kakashi had used in his substitution. Until she had enough money to afford an adequate supply of weapons for herself, she needed to salvage whatever she could find.

"Thanks for saving me, Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered, grinning. "So how about me and you get ourselves bells together? We can team up on Sasuke!"

Sakura smirked. "Yeah, let's work together," she agreed, impressed that Naruto was actually proposing teamwork. But Sakura knew that the only way Kakashi would let them pass the test was if all  _three_ members of Team Seven worked together. "But I think we need to work with Sasuke too. Kakashi-sensei is way out of our leagues so we'll need all the help we can get."

Naruto glowered at her. "Sakura-chan, Kakashi only has  _two bells_. One of us has to lose. And I am  _not_  teaming up with that bastard. Or  _losing_ ," he spat while crossing his arms stubbornly.

Sakura sighed. He was right, of course. Kakashi arranged the exercise in such a way that they would think they were competing with each other, when in truth, competing would only guarantee them failure. But how would she ever explain that to Naruto?

"Look Naruto, maybe this test isn't about what meets the eye," she tried.

"No!' Naruto yelled, seeming to forget about the whispering. "If you want to work with Sasuke, count me out! I'll find Kakashi and take him on myself!" And with that, he created a couple of shadow clones and took off after their sensei, emitting a loud battle cry.

Sakura clenched her teeth.  _That stubborn idiot._  He was going to cause the team to fail this test  _again_.

_But what could I even do to change that?_

Sakura reminded herself that Naruto  _would_ mature with time (a lot of time) and that his childish, self-centeredness wouldn't be cured in a day.

Things would improve. She just needed to be patient.

_Go with the flow._

She ventured through the trees at a light jog in search of the others and soon sensed Kakashi's chakra approaching from behind her. She continued to run, pretending she hadn't noticed him, while gathering chakra to her hand. When she felt that he was at a close enough range, she swung around, and in one fluid motion, struck the ground with her fist. The earth around it was blasted into pieces.

It was no where near as impressive a feat as she was once capable of, but it seemed to do the job.

Kakashi sprang out from his hiding place. "Impressive," he said and landing a few metres away. "You've forced me out into the open. That technique requires advanced chakra control," he added with a curious stare and then disappearing through the nearby trees.

"Thanks," she answered uncertainly and bracing for his counterattack.

But Kakashi didn't reappear. Sakura spun around and noticed that his chakra was fading out of her sensory range.  _What's he up to?_  she wondered while cautiously returning to her original path into the forest.  _Did he really give up on me that quickly?_

That was when she heard a gut-wrenching cry from somewhere ahead of her.

Sakura's heart sank.  _That voice!_  Her legs propelled her into the brush and moments later, there he was.

On the edge of a small clearing, Sasuke's body was hunched over in a crumpled mess, propped against a tree trunk for support, and the grass below him was stained crimson.

The sight was paralyzing.

Weapons protruded from all of his limbs. His left forearm had been severed clean from his body, leaving a trembling, bleeding stump behind. There were deep slashes across his face from which blood oozed and dribbled down to his chin.

"S-Sakura," he said weakly and visibly struggling to lift his head. "Help me!" His pleading, bloodshot eyes met hers.

Sakura's stomach churned.  _How could this have happened?_ This had to be a dream. A nightmare. This had to be –

_Genjutsu._

Sakura snatched the kunai from her weapon pouch and, without a second thought, fired it straight between Sasuke's eyes.

_Thunk._

He disappeared in a cloud of smoke and the knife struck the tree behind him.  _Damn, Kakashi-sensei's skills in genjutsu are good._ Even though she saw through it in a matter of seconds, the technique sure did give her a fright. Did he really use that same illusion on her former self? Sakura could hardly remember it happening. She probably passed out.

After retrieving her kunai from the tree, Sakura resumed jogging through the forest and soon arrived at a clearing. It was filled with remnants of a battle; weapons were scattered around and embedded in trees, small craters had formed in the ground, and the bushes and trees on the outskirts of the clearing were singed black. Sasuke, the fire-breathing member of the team, must have been here.

"Sakura?"

She jumped and spun towards the source of Sasuke's voice.  _Again?_

But he wasn't there. At least, that was what she thought until her eyes drifted lower and found Sasuke's head at her feet, protruding from the ground. Still feeling jumpy from Kakashi's genjutsu, she leaped back and drew a weapon. But after a brief assessment of the predicament, his grumpy expression and all, she concluded that this time it wasn't genjutsu. The scene was also distantly familiar.

"What happened?" she asked and fighting an untimely urge to snigger. Seeing a head sticking out of the ground wasn't an easy sight to digest. Especially the head of the almighty Sasuke Uchiha.

"Kakashi used an Earth Style attack called Head Hunter jutsu," he explained, glowering. "He attacked me from underground and pulled me down with him."

"Nice, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura breathed thoughtfully, to which Sasuke shot her an irritated look.

_Was that out loud?_

"Er... I mean, let's get you out of here," she corrected, a fake smile dancing on her lips.

"How?" he asked skeptically.

"I can move the earth around you," she answered simply. Sasuke's eyebrows rose. "But I only have experience with shattering the ground with a lot of force to throw enemies off. I've never actually done this in a controlled manner." She inspected the earth around him and lowered to a crouch. If she really screwed this up, Sasuke could get blown to bits. But in her body's current form, she reasoned, she probably didn't have the strength to cause much damage anyways.

Sakura gathered a generous pulse of chakra to her hand. Sasuke stared at it in disbelief. "Can I try this?" she asked him seriously.

"Sure," he said, still looking skeptical.

Sakura placed her palm on the ground about a foot away from her teammate's head and instantly, with a resounding  _CRACK_ , the ground crumbled beneath her hand as if it were as shapeless as sand. "Whoa!" Sasuke gasped as the earth broke into pieces around him. He managed to pull himself out and scramble backwards just as the hole began to cave in on itself.

Sakura pulled her arm back and grabbed onto it with the other hand in attempt to control its sudden trembling.  _I'm weak,_ she thought in horror as her chakra reserves rapidly slipped and her vision grew bleary. Her new body was utterly pathetic with how her scrawny limbs were too frail to handle immense concentrations of chakra. She needed to train. She needed to get stronger. And fast.

"How did you do that?"

Sakura's head jerked up. She'd nearly forgotten Sasuke was there.

He was standing across from the enormous hole in the ground, gaping down at the dirt-filled, metre-wide opening. But instead of answering, Sakura's medical ninja instincts pulled her focus to the bloody gash below her teammate's knee. Ignoring his question, she asked, "Did I just injure you?" while nodding in the direction of his leg.

It seemed to take Sasuke a moment to figure out what she was referring to. "Oh," he said and glancing down with a shrug. "Yeah, I guess. But how did you do that?" he repeated, traces of annoyance appearing in his tone for being so blatantly ignored.

"Damn it!" Sakura cried.  _This is just embarrassing._ As a ninja who prided in her abilities to control her chakra and perform intricate medical procedures, accidentally injuring the very person she was trying to save was  _not_  a good look.

She leaped across the hole and crouched down to inspect Sasuke's leg from up close. "Sit," she ordered, her commanding doctor demeanor whirring to life.

Taken aback by her authoritative tone, he growled, "I'm not hurt. Leave it alone." He was growing increasingly agitated, likely because his earlier question was  _still_  being ignored.

"I don't care," she snapped. "I shouldn't have made this mistake. But I can heal you."

Sasuke took pause. " _Heal_ me?" he repeated. This notion seemed to catch his interest enough for him to finally obey and lower himself onto the grass.

 _All right._ Sakura raised her hand and closed her eyes to focus. This would be her first time practicing medical ninjutsu since she traveled through time. Would she even be able to do it? She knew  _what_  to do, but could her body keep up?

There was only one way to find out.

She gathered chakra to her hand, but to her dismay, the chakra glowed blue – a sign that it was charged with lethal energy.

 _No_. Her only superior ability... there was no way she'd lost it too. With a cry of frustration, Sakura doubled the amount of chakra in her hand and used every ounce of strength she could forge to transform the chakra into the soothing, healing substance she needed.

And after the longest, most excruciating minute Sakura had possibly ever endured, the chakra shifted in hue to a rich, swirling green. "Aha!" she exclaimed and pressing her hand to Sasuke's leg. She closed her eyes and carefully manipulated how the chakra coursed through his limb.  _Apply pressure around the cut... Repair damaged blood capillaries... Seal the broken skin..._  And when Sakura pulled her hand away, his leg was completely healed.

Great. Sakura Haruno, who was once the second most advanced medical ninja in all of Konoha, and arguably in the entire ninja world, was now barely capable of one of the most basic procedures in medical ninjutsu.

Just bloody fantastic.

"There," she said dismissively and standing again.

Now what?

The bell test suddenly felt rather pointless. Sakura needed to focus on getting this pathetic body of hers up to speed.

 _Tsunade would have known what to do,_  Sakura thought with a pang of loneliness.  _She helped me build my strength last time and I'm sure she could do it again. Too bad she's probably miles away, drunk off her ass…_

"Sakura, wait," said Sasuke, who was also getting to his feet. "I have questions for you."

She stared at him.  _I guess I can't blame him for being a little intrigued_ , she thought with a tiny swell of pride. As pathetic as her abilities were in the grand scheme of things, they were still pretty rare and well beyond their years. "What questions?"

"How did you learn such advanced chakra control?"

Sakura weighed whether an honest answer would come off as unusual. She reasoned that for a prodigy like Sasuke Uchiha, maybe it wouldn't. "I've always had a natural aptitude for it," she said, and that was no lie. "And I just... you know, trained hard for a long time."

He took a step towards her, eyeing her cautiously. The expression on his face was a cross of weariness and intrigue – like he was approaching some sort of untamed animal.

"And the medical ninjutsu?" he asked and narrowing his dark eyes. "You never used it last night. I thought you were bluffing about it but apparently I was mistaken." He was pacing around her now, sizing her up.

 _Shit_. How was she going to answer this? Medical ninjutsu wasn't something a ninja merely stumbled upon.  _What if I told him that I taught myself? Does he think I'm smart enough to believe that?_   _Probably not, but what other excuse do I have?_  Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but then another thought occurred to her. "Wait, last night? What do you mean?"

"I watched you training," was his nonchalant response, like what he was confiding was completely normal.

Sakura's eyebrows shot up. " _Watched_  me?" she said and failing to mask her surprise. "I never sensed your chakra."

He scoffed and stopped his pacing. "I'm an  _Uchiha_. You might not know me well, but I'm different from the other Genin."

Sakura held her tongue.

"I was going to train on those grounds myself and watched you for awhile before I found somewhere else. I learned that you're stronger than you look, even before I knew you had  _these_ abilities." He looked up. "So  _what else_  are you hiding?" Sasuke's eyes bore into hers, and Sakura's stomach churned uncomfortably. How the hell was it that he  _still_ read her like a book? Even now that she was from an entirely different universe?

"I don't know," she answered truthfully and turning away to avoid his scrutinizing gaze. Then, before she could stop herself, Sakura added, "Something happened to me recently. I got weaker. I lost some of my abilities. So I'm  _also_  trying to find out what I'm capable of."

 _Was that too much?_  It was far too easy to confide in Sasuke.  _Dangerously_ easy. At this rate, she might totally give herself away.

But... it  _was_ nice to have someone to open up to, however slightly...

"Train with me."

Sakura glanced over her shoulder, her mouth hanging open. "Help me with chakra control. I'll help you with strength," he added seriously, like he was challenging her to refuse his offer.

Train with Sasuke? Was that a smart move?

Well, he  _was_ the best graduate in their year with one of the most versatile skillsets Sakura had ever seen. It would also be nice to spend her personal training hours doing something other than tossing boulders around. And also…

"If I say yes, can I use your weapons?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

_BRRRINGG!_

"Damn it. That was the alarm," Sasuke groaned and stalking off in the direction of the ringing. "I've wasted too much time here." And with that, he made his way back towards the tree stumps where Kakashi would be distributing lunches to his students with bells.

***

The following sequence of events were very familiar to Sakura.

By the time she and Sasuke regrouped with their team, Kakashi had already tied Naruto to a tree stump for trying to steal the lunches. He lectured them on how the objective of the exercise was to work as a team and that they had one more chance to pass the bell test, allowing Sasuke and Sakura to eat the lunches in front of Naruto. Once he left, Sasuke and Sakura shared their lunches with their poor, starving teammate and upon Kakashi's return, he announced that they'd passed for prioritizing camaraderie over the rules.

Sakura had to admit that Kakashi's teaching methods were a little bizarre, but at least his heart was in the right place.

"I'm a ninja! Woo hoo!" Naruto exclaimed while wriggling against the ropes binding him to the tree stump.

Kakashi smiled from somewhere under his mask. "Well done, Team Seven! Our first formal training session will take place tomorrow," he said and flashing them all a thumbs-up. Then he started his walk back to the village's core, ignoring Naruto's yells about how he was still tied up.

And as he passed by her, Sasuke mumbled, "And for us… tonight."


	5. Gravity

"Sakura? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, ah... Just thought I would pay you a visit."

Sakura found herself in the Yamanaka Flower Shop on her way home from training – the shop that Ino's family owned and that her best friend worked part-time at. Something about their unfamiliarly bitter interactions the previous day wasn't sitting right with Sakura. She missed her friend, even though she wasn't her friend yet.

Ino strode out from behind the counter and placed a hand on her hip, her long, blonde hair draping over her shoulder. "You never come in  _just_  to visit," she said and eyeing Sakura suspiciously. "What are you  _really_ here for?"

Sakura racked her brain for a lie. Of course, she could have easily said she wanted to buy some flowers, but instead what came out of her mouth was, "To catch up."

"Ha!" Ino sneered. Her piercing, blue eyes danced over Sakura's face like she was trying to uncover an ulterior motive. After a moment, Ino jutted out her lip and untied her apron. "You can come to the back room. But not for long." She beckoned for Sakura to follow her.

Once they were in the privacy of the storage room behind the counter, Ino went to the miniature fridge and pulled out a pair of cold beverages while Sakura's eyes wandered around the room. Locked cabinets and miniature greenhouses lined the walls. "So, what's new?" she asked absently and ignoring Ino's reproachful glance.

The blonde cleared her throat and sat down on one of the blue fold-out chairs. "Not much, I guess," she said. And then, "I mean… Shikamaru could be cute if he wasn't such a lazy jerk. And don't get me started on Chōji!"

Sakura opened her mouth and closed it again.  _Boys. Of course._

Ino continued gabbing away while Sakura nodded along, but girl talk just didn't have the same appeal it used to have.

"Anyways, it could be worse," Ino said. " _Naruto_  could be on my team." She grinned smugly like she had won something while Sakura lowered herself onto the other chair.

Sakura figured it would only make sense to agree. "Yeah," Sakura said with a chuckle. "He's pretty annoying."

"That's an understatement," Ino said and raising her eyebrows. "But I guess it's the price you pay for getting to see Sasuke everyday, you lucky thing." Ino's eyes proceeded to glaze over and, as Sakura anticipated, her spiel about how easy on the eyes Sakura's dark-haired teammate was began.

Meanwhile, Sakura's eyes started wandering again.

Until they locked on a shelf labelled  _Herbs._

Herbs. That was it.

"—and I bet he secretly  _loves_ the attention. He's just a shy type, am I right?"

"Right," Sakura piped up, a little dismissively, and then, "Hey, sorry to change the subject, but how much does a set of medical herbs cost?"

Ino's lips quirked. "Why?" she asked, visibly baffled.

"I… want to collect them," Sakura replied hesitantly. "And it would be a great help if you could hook me up with a basic set."

Ino shot her a suspicious look but eventually said "I can  _probably_  throw something together for you." Sakura's heart leapt.  _Now_  she was getting somewhere. With only a few more supplies, she could start crafting her own ointments.

Realizing that the only way to secure this deal was if she was on Ino's good side, with a sudden rush of adrenaline, Sakura said, "That would be great, Pig. So… did any of the other rookies catch your eye?"

Ino paused and then smirked.

The two girls spent the next half hour chatting about movies, boys, who-liked-who, and organic skin products. Despite the conversation having no immediate relevance to Sakura's life and goals, she reasoned that it wasn't a total waste of time if their friendship needed rekindling. Besides, allowing herself to become a little absorbed in mindless conversation was kind of refreshing.

As dinnertime approached, she bid Ino farewell (after persuading her to toss some poisonous plants into her new package of herbs).

_Now I can embed poison into my weapons. Perfect._

"That was nice," Ino said with a small, snarky smile as Sakura collected her new things.

"It was," Sakura agreed, smiling up at the blonde. She was surprised that approaching Ino kindly was all it took for some kind of bond to foster. Was it really Sakura's own fault that their friendship was basically nonexistent in her former life as a young teenager? If all she had to do was drop the competitiveness and play nice, maybe maintaining this friendship wouldn't be hard after all…

Well, regardless of how hard it was, she at least had to try. She wanted those herbs.

As Sakura turned to leave, Ino called after her, "You still like him, right?"

Sakura paused at the doorway. That old rivalry over Sasuke's attention seemed so trivial after everything that had happened in her past life. Ino (and just about everyone elses') shallow, surface-level attraction ebbed away when Sasuke turned criminal. Sakura's heart, on the other hand, had carried her down a different path.

But for now this rivalry was just harmless fun... right? It was a game, really, and some part of Sakura sensed that Ino liked it. Surely they could maintain some sort of friendship with a common object of affection. At least, Sakura hoped so. "Of course," she replied with a small grin and hoping she had assumed correctly.

She was just starting to second-guess her resolve when Ino grinned back.

"Good. It's no fun if you don't."

***

When Sakura walked through the front door of her parents' house, her mother informed her that there was a missed call from the hospital. She excitedly retuned the call and discovered that a doctor had a volunteer opportunity to offer her. She arranged to drop by for her first shift the following day after training with her team.

Thrilled, she wolfed down her dinner, helped her parents tidy up the kitchen, and departed to her room to inspect her new stash of medical supplies. At eight o'clock, she packed up her training gear and a water bottle, and slipped out the front door to the training grounds. Sasuke never specified when or where exactly he wanted to meet her, but that didn't matter. She was planning to train regardless of whether he was there.

When she arrived at the grounds, to her surprise, it was not Sasuke but Naruto who she found.

Tied to a tree stump.

"Naruto?" she asked as she approached him. She'd totally forgotten about leaving him behind after the bell test.

_How did he get out of this in my old life?_

"S-Sakura-chan," he replied weakly. "I'm so hungry..."

She sliced the ropes with her kunai. "Kakashi-sensei tied you up real good, huh Naruto?" she asked with a small laugh.

But Naruto didn't respond. "Ramen... Need... ramen," he chanted while stumbling to his feet and making a beeline towards the core of the village (specifically, to his favourite ramen restaurant). Sakura watched his retreating figure until he was out of sight.  _The poor guy could really use some extra training in the escape arts._

"Okay, let's go," said a new voice.

Sakura spun around and brandished a kunai before her. Sasuke, clad in his training gear and bearing a signature frown, glanced at the kunai and raised his eyebrows. "You need to work on your reflexes," he noted.

"Oh. Sorry," she said and hastily shoving the knife back in its holster. "I didn't know you were here."

"I've been here for a while," he said while crouching down to open and empty his backpack.

"And why didn't you free Naruto from the stump?" Sakura asked, feigning an accusatory tone.

"Why would I do that?" he answered absently without looking up.

Sakura rolled her eyes and lowered to a squat to examine Sasuke's stash of weapons. Among the shuriken and kunai were long senbon needles, a few daggers, a couple of demon wind shuriken, a bow, and several arrows. "This is great," she mumbled and staring longingly at the shining metal objects like a kid in a candy store. "Er, I don't have many of my own to offer," she added sheepishly and emptying her tiny holster of shuriken and kunai onto the ground.

"That's fine," Sasuke said dismissively. "Let's warm up."

"Sure." She stood. "I usually start with a lap around the village," Sakura said before she could think better of it.

… _But can my body really handle that kind of distance in this pathetic state?_

Well, based on what she'd observed of her skills that day, probably not. "But, um... how about a shorter route today?" she offered with a weak smile.

Sasuke shrugged. "Whatever," he said while turning on his heel then running towards the trees. She followed suit and soon they were leaping through the branches, using chakra to propel themselves through the forest. It was growing dark and the air was cool and crisp in the shade of the trees.

Sakura felt a rush of adrenaline rise in her chest. The sensation was amazing. It was a peaceful state to be in with her mind only focused on her pumping legs, the trees, the wind rushing past her ears, and Sasuke's back, which was bobbing in and out of sight ahead of her. They made it around a quarter of the village and then turned back without saying a word to each other.

When they returned to the clearing, Sakura's untrained lungs and muscles were aching. She bent over, resting her hands on her knees, and struggled to catch her breath. "Sorry... Sasuke," she panted. "My body is... so weak." She reached for her water and took a generous gulp. "I hope I have enough chakra left to train effectively."

"Well, if you want to build up a substantial reserve of chakra, you have to expel it frequently," Sasuke explained and also pausing for a drink. He didn't look half as tired as she suspected she did. Aside from the sparse beads of sweat on his brow and the slight rise and fall in his chest, he seemed as composed as he always did. "The more chakra you use, the more chakra your body will produce."

"Right," she replied and forcing herself upright (and making a mental note that she would start hopping from rooftop to rooftop through the village when she ran errands). "So, what now?"

Next they practiced throwing weapons at a set of targets Sasuke fastened to the row of tree trunks. As expected, he threw his knives and shuriken with flawless accuracy, but Sakura's abilities lagged behind. She started off standing too far from the trunks, overestimating the strength of her arms. Her weapons struck the wood below the target.

"Your stance is fine," Sasuke observed while he took aim for another target. Sakura hadn't realized he'd been watching her. "The problem is –"

"My strength," she cut in, glowering. "I've realized,"

They threw weapons for about an hour, alternating between hitting the tree trunks from varying distances and throwing each other aerial targets. Sakura started to adjust to her new body and her accuracy improved immensely by the end of the hour. But her abilities still fell short of the Uchiha prodigy's (considerably so).

"All right, I want to show you something," Sakura said while rooting through the weapons from the ground around her feet. "Come here." Sasuke glanced up from where he stood by the targets, seemingly taken aback by her commanding tone. He approached her curiously with his hands in his pockets.

Sakura picked up a shuriken and placed it flat on her palm. "We're doing chakra control training. Here is a little trick my mentor taught me." Then she sent a steady stream of chakra to her hand, and once she was certain the pressure was just right, flipped her hand over. The shuriken stuck.

Sasuke watched carefully. "You need to exert just the right amount," Sakura explained. "Too weak a hold and the shuriken will fall. Too strong a hold and you could pull the shuriken right into your hand. So be careful," she added. "Some people start with harmless objects like cloth or fabric, but I find the learning curve is usually steaper when there is a risk of injury."

She tossed the shuriken to her teammate. Wordlessly, he did as he was instructed and placed the weapon on his palm and closed his eyes in concentration. When he flipped his hand around, he winced and jumped back. The shuriken dropped to the ground.

"Too strong," he mumbled while lowering onto the grass, crossing his legs, and retrieving the shuriken. Sasuke's brows were furrowed and he had a stubborn look in his eye. He tried again, but his hold was too weak and the shuriken found its way back to the ground. Sakura sat next to him and coached Sasuke through the technique until, thirty minutes later, he managed to get the shuriken to stick for a total of six seconds.

"Good!" she said encouragingly. "Once you get the hang of it, the rest will come easily. Watch this." She brought a pointed end of the shuriken to the tip of her nose and closed her eyes. Then she retracted her hands, allowing it dangle there.

He raised his eyebrows and nodded, impressed. "This is a good exercise," he said. "Clearly I need to work on it."

"I'm glad I've contributed something useful," she mumbled with a shrug and doing everything in her power to not appear too pleased. She was struggling to grasp that she was  _better_  at something than the great Sasuke Uchiha. "Okay, now it's your turn to help me with strength training. Just let me heal the cuts in your hand first."

Sasuke's eyes flickered in her direction. He remained silent but didn't resist when she took his hand and pumped chakra into the scabs created by the shuriken. He watched the procedure intently, his eyes trained on her green chakra. And Sakura was relieved to find that conjuring her medical chakra was a  _little_  easier this time around. "That skill took a long time to master, I'm guessing," he said while nodding towards her glowing hands.

"Years," she answered proudly. He shot her a questioning stare but didn't probe any further.

Next they worked on basic strength training – from push ups to lifting and tossing boulders and uprooted trees. It was at this point that Sakura began to feel exhausted. Her scrawny limbs were shaking after only twenty minutes of their strength exercises. She would have dropped a tree on herself, in fact, if Sasuke hadn't caught it in the nick of time. "All right, don't hurt yourself," he said while setting it down. "I think we should call it a night."

Sakura helped Sasuke gather his weapons and targets. Her arms were still trembling. Sasuke apparently noticed.

"Why don't you heal yourself?" he asked without sparing her a glance.

"I don't want to interfere with my natural muscle development," she said, shrugging. "And I don't like to waste chakra on myself unless I really have to."

He turned and watched her pack the bag without responding. When she finished up, she faced him. "Well, thank you for inviting me out," Sakura said with a polite nod.

He returned the nod. "I'll continue doing that chakra control exercise tonight. I'll have it mastered for tomorrow."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "What's tomorrow?"

"Let's train again," was his curt reply. "Same time." Sakura tilted her head to the side and smirked. He noticed her expression and averted his gaze, colour appearing on his face.

And that was all it took.

What happened next was entirely out of Sakura's control. Her stomach flipped. Her heart began to thud. A mixture of nervousness and excitement filled her chest. Because there was something about that familiar expression on Sasuke's face that filled her mind with emotions and memories.

It dawned on her that Sasuke the village traitor and power-hungry villain was  _not_ the boy in front of her. No, this boy was her overprotective, mysterious, and quirky teammate. The boy who she once knew like the back of her hand and who, once upon a time, was her protector and dear friend.

"What?" he asked, snapping her out of her trance.

Sakura blinked and felt her face grow hot.  _Um…_

"I was... thinking about how I'm going to extract poison from my herbs," she lied quickly. Sasuke gave her a quizzical look, prompting her to elaborate. He was clearly oblivious to her emotional turmoil. "I'm going to embed some of my weapons with poison tonight."

"Oh," he said.

A moderately awkward moment of silence passed before he added, "Well, see you in the morning."

"Yeah, see you." They both took off towards their respective houses.

Meanwhile, Sakura's mind was racing. She was beginning to doubt if spending so much time with her dark-haired teammate was such a good idea anymore. Because with how smitten she knew she was capable of becoming, his presence might distract her from the important things. Falling uncontrollably head-over-heels for  _anyone_ would do her no good.

_Just look at where that got me last time._

***

Despite Sakura's best efforts, however, she did see a lot of Sasuke in the coming days. And she saw very little of her pillow.

She spent her nights sorting through her collection of plants and researching the simplest practices for extracting chemicals from them. She started compiling a list of errands to run at the flower shop and embedded three kunai with poison.

Also, Team Seven took on their first D-Rank missions. Naruto was enthralled until he realized that the missions consisted of catching stray animals, babysitting, and manual labour. Sakura wasn't particularly let down by the slow pace of these missions because she knew from the start that D-Ranks were just chores.

But as the days went on, she started to feel a little anxious. Because the time she spent with her team became a complete waste. D-Ranked missions served to cultivate a sense of duty and self-discipline in young ninjas and the only one on the team who  _really_  needed help with that was Naruto.

And Sakura's volunteer work at the hospital ended up being far less thrilling than she hoped for. On her first day, she filed paperwork then cleaned beakers and test tubes in the lab. She didn't even have any opportunities to witness medical practices let alone  _see_  any of the patients. But regardless of her initial disappointment, she showed up at the hospital every day after training with Team Seven.

Because even if it was just grunt work, it was the single connection she had with the hospital.

The only part of her days that Sakura  _actually_  found productive was her after-hours training with Sasuke.

His chakra control was improving immensely. He mastered sticking flat objects to his hands by the second night of training and he was able to stick shuriken to his arms and legs by the third night. "Excellent!" Sakura said. "Next week we'll start working with the long needles. Using the sharp ends." And he seemed quite determined to rise to that challenge.

Sasuke let slip that he was staying up for nearly the entire nights practicing the techniques she showed him. She believed it, considering the rate he was improving.

Sakura noticed a little improvement in her strength training too. Her ever-increasing fatigue was slowing down her progress, but her chakra depleted at a slower rate with each new exercise and she was starting to develop calluses on her hands and feet.

But after four days, was Sakura used to this new life?

No. Not at all.

It was all still very surreal. She felt like she was living in a prolonged dream that would soon come to an end. Team Seven met every day at the training grounds and embarked on mindless missions together. In her old life, Sakura would have given anything to relive these days. But not now. Not now that she had the burden of saving the world as she knew it resting on her shoulders.

Naruto was his young and foolish self. He hadn't tapped into the Nine Tailed Fox's power yet and he never failed to make Sakura smile at least five times and injure himself at least six times on each mission. Sakura was also struck by how different her sensei was. Kakashi appeared blissful and calm for the most part, consistently showing up late for their team meetings, and frequently caught reading his little orange "Make-Out Paradise" book.

And Sakura would have cherished spending so much time alone with Sasuke in her past life. But instead, she spent the entirety of their one-on-one training sessions trying to shut out any thoughts unrelated to building up her abilities. She also spent a lot of time hating how weak and tired she was and pushing and  _fighting_ her physical limitations.

But on the third day of training with Sasuke on no sleep, she reached a breaking point.

Sakura could barely throw a kunai straight by the end of the session.

She cried out in frustration and collapsed onto the ground. She missed her old body and desperately needed to do something. Do something productive with her life. But what  _could_  she do without any strength?

That was when she was lifted into the air.

"Whoa, w-what are you doing?" Sakura stammered with surprise when she processed that Sasuke was pulling her up by her arms.

"You need to stop," he said and setting her on her feet. "You're going to hurt yourself."

He was right. Of course he was right. But Sakura refused to believe it. Then, before she could stop herself, the words were tumbling out of her mouth.

" _You_  wouldn't understand... You've never been as weak as I am, lagging behind everyone! I'm not as good as you but I  _have_  to get stronger... Strong enough to complete my mission. I need to stop him..."

Sasuke didn't answer and turned away to pack up the bag with their training supplies. Sakura placed her hand on the tree stump beside her to steady her wobbly legs. It was then she noticed the stabbing pains in her ankles and calves. She had pulled and torn muscles.

Tears welled up in her eyes for the first time in what felt like years. She was getting discouraged. Only four days had passed and this life was already unbearable. Constant confusion, stress, isolation...

She then realized that Sasuke was hooking the straps of the backpack around her arms but her mind was so clouded that she couldn't find the words to ask him why. She was too focused on stopping the tears resting in her lower eyelids from spilling down her face.

Next thing she knew, Sasuke was hoisting her onto his back. Sakura emitted a gasp and flailed her arms to gain her balance before gripping onto his shirt.

"You're done for today," he said curtly as he straightened up and started carrying her away to the village core. Finally giving in, Sakura let herself slump onto his shoulders. A break would probably do her body some good and Sakura knew that more than anyone given her medical expertise. But her stubbornness had been keeping her from acknowledging it. "And tomorrow," Sasuke continued as he made his way down the dirt road, "we'll take the night off."

"Okay," Sakura said weakly with a soft sigh. She was too tired to say anything else.

Several minutes passed in silence. Then they reached the main road.

"And stop acting like I don't understand you."

Sasuke's comment pulled Sakura out of her slumber. "What?"

"You aren't the only one here who has lost everything."

 _Did I… touch a sore spot?_  It hadn't occurred to Sakura that she might have said something to offend her teammate. She hadn't been filtering her words or considering what they implied. And nothing could have prepared her for what Sasuke said next.

His back tensed and his grip on her calves tightened a little. "In case you haven't heard... There was a massacre in our village years ago. My brother lost his mind and murdered every member of the Uchiha clan. Except for me."

Sakura's breath caught in her throat.

"I lost everything," Sasuke hissed, the deep-seated emotion seeping through his words. "I saw him kill my parents. Over and over again in his genjutsu. Seeing that did something to me and I can't stop thinking about it. And now… the only thing that keeps me going is my hatred for him. And the hope that one day he will be dead by my hand."

Sasuke paused, perhaps realizing that he was venting. Sakura didn't know how to respond. She was caught off-guard by how readily he was opening up to her.

"Compared to him, I'm nothing. I wasn't able to save my parents. And I won't rest until I've avenged them. _You_  might not see me as weak, but that's how I see myself. So I don't think we're that different."

They were now at the walkway leading to Sakura's house.

Sasuke hesitated for a moment before setting her down and stepping away. Sakura also took a step back and observed her teammate.

There was something vulnerable written in his features, something that she had only ever seen on rare occasions in her past life. Now that she had a clear view of him in the moonlight, Sakura noticed how his chest was rising and falling with each breath and his jaw was clenched. He was determinedly glaring away from her with frown lines creased between his eyebrows.

Sakura's worries over the time travel mission melted away. A new pain, a pain that could not be healed with medical ninjutsu, rose in her.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, unsure of what to say. She needed to tread carefully. "I already knew about your clan, Sasuke. I'm sorry. I was just... I was caught up in my frustration and... the words just spilled out." She took off the backpack and held it in front of her while staring down at her feet.

It took Sasuke a moment to register that she was returning his bag. He slowly took hold of the handle, his mind clearly elsewhere. "It's fine. I've been there," he finally said in a dismissive tone. Sakura looked up and met his gaze to find that the vulnerable traces she saw before were gone.

"All right," he said and slinging the bag over his shoulder. "You should sleep tonight. No plants." He turned away and started walking back towards the main road. "You'll be no help to me if you burn yourself out," he added over his shoulder before he picked up his pace.

Sakura was left smiling helplessly at his retreating figure as Sasuke trekked into the darkness towards his own empty house. Her legs were still wobbling but she wasn't so sure that had to do with her damaged muscles anymore.

He disappeared into the night, leaving the image of the Uchiha crest on his back imprinted in her mind.

**Photo Credit:** wolf08, http://wolf08.tumblr.com/day/2018/04/21


	6. Suspicions

"OUUUCH!"

Naruto was howling from where he was crouched by the river. The empty soda can he'd been holding dropped into the rushing current with a splash and he was clutching his hand.

"What did you do, Naruto?" Sakura asked slowly, wondering if he was actually complaining about something worth noting this time. But then she spotted the blood spilling from a deep gash on his palm.

 _Well. It appears he's causing a scene for a_ reason  _for once._

"The can cut me!" he cried and staring at Sakura with wide, emotion-filled eyes.

"Of course it did," she said and taking his hand to pump her green chakra into the open wound. The skin started repairing itself immediately. One of the few advantages of having a young teenage Naruto on her team was that she got plenty of medical ninjutsu practice in.

Kakashi announced earlier that morning that they were assigned the "mission" of cleaning the trash out of the river that ran along the south side of the village. So far, Naruto had fallen in the river twice, dropped his wallet in once, and now, injured himself with a piece of garbage.

"What's going on over here?" Kakashi, who had just jogged over from his position down the river, asked. His eyes landed on the green glow surrounding their hands. "Ah, I see. Our team's medical ninja saves the day again. Naruto, how is it that you've managed to hurt yourself seven times on only five D-Ranked missions?"

"Because it's always so  _unfair_ ," Naruto wailed. "I mean, look at how  _fast_  the current is where I'm working! How come pretty boy always gets it easy? The water over there is the calmest!" Instinctively, the three of them glanced to where Sasuke was tying up an enormous bag of garbage about a hundred metres away. Sensing their stares, he looked up and started making his way towards them.

Kakashi sighed. Naruto was such a handful. "Maybe it's because I'm giving you a more advanced challenge to... er... help you improve your skills."

Naruto gazed up at him and a mischievous grin slowly spread across his face. "Oh yeah? You're challenging me more because I have more potential than Sasuke does, right sensei?"

"Er – "

"Your skills as a garbage collector are impressive, Naruto," said Sasuke, now arriving at Naruto's designated trash-collecting zone. "They put your taijutsu to shame."

"Why you...," Naruto growled and balling his freshly healed hand into a fist.

"Whoa, Naruto. Take it easy or you might reopen the cut," Sakura hissed and pushing his hand down.

"No, Sakura-chan! I've put up with enough from that bastard. I've  _had_ it with him. And I've  _had_ it with D-Ranked missions!"

Ignoring Naruto's first comment, Sasuke added, "He has a point. When are we going on a real mission?"

Kakashi heaved a lengthy sigh. "When I feel your teamwork skills are substantial, I'll do what I can to sign us up for a C-Ranked mission." Sakura glanced at the two boys who were now glowering at each other. At this rate, it was quite evident that they weren't going on a C-Ranked mission for a while. "Anyways, I think we can call it a day. We've been fairly productive for the past three hours. And don't forget that I'm giving you all the weekend off."

Naruto whooped and Sakura felt a tinge of relief. It had been a long, mind-numbing morning. "Great! Time for some ramen!" Naruto exclaimed. "Want to join me, Sakura-chan?" he added, as he had asked after each mission that week.

Sakura shook her head. "Sorry, Naruto. I volunteer at the hospital every day after our missions, remember?" she answered, as she had each time he asked.

"Oh yeah! I forgot." And with that, he took off into village. Sasuke also picked up his bag and turned to leave. Just as he was springing into the air, Sakura was sure she caught sight of a shuriken stuck to his arm under the sleeve of his blue t-shirt.

"Sakura," Kakashi said once the others were well out of ear-shot. "Do you mind if we talk for a moment?"

_Uh oh._

Sakura knew it was only a matter of time before Kakashi cornered her like this. "Sure, sensei," she said uncertainly while packing up her bag.

He stood in front of her and folded his arms. "It's nice to see you volunteering at the hospital. I didn't realize I was getting a student with such a rich medical background on my team."

 _Here we go,_  Sakura thought with a wince.

"So. How did you learn medical ninjutsu?" he asked.

Sakura had known those words were coming. But she couldn't help panicking now that she was finally hearing them.

"I have a... natural aptitude I guess. I taught myself," she answered lamely, trying out the same excuse she gave to Sasuke.

It clearly didn't convince Kakashi, however, because next he asked, "Who did you train under?"

"I didn't train under anyone," she lied. Sakura knew she wasn't fooling him but she simply  _couldn't_ admit that she trained under Tsunade. In this world, Tsunade didn't even  _know_  her yet. If Sakura went around claiming she was the Legendary Sanin's apprentice, it would surely cause some serious confusion down the road.

Kakashi's expression didn't change, his visible dark eye surveying her carefully. "All right," he said. "Your style reminds me of someone I know. So I was curious."

Sakura exhaled with relief at his dismissive tone. Did she really manage to get herself out of this conversation so easily? "Of course, sensei," she replied before slinging her bag over her shoulder.

"You aren't from here, are you?"

Sakura froze in her tracks. What did he mean by that? "I was born and raised in Konoha," she answered honestly before turning away and approaching the path that led into the village.

"That doesn't necessarily answer my question."

Sakura picked up her pace, her heart racing. "I have no idea what you mean, sensei!" she called over her shoulder. "Sorry, but I'm going to be late for my volunteer shift! See you later." She started running and didn't dare look back.

Yes, her current behavior probably wasn't helping with how suspicious she looked. But she needed to get away from this situation and fast.

What was Kakashi getting at? Did she do something to give herself away? Or did he find the scroll?  _No,_  she reminded herself.  _The scroll is safely tucked away in my underwear drawer disguised as a pair of red panties. Kakashi would never think to look in there._

But when she remembered the little orange book her sensei was always reading, she decided that it couldn't hurt to check on the scroll. Just in case.

***

However, as time went on, Sakura's concerns over the safety of the time travel scroll became more intrusive. She struggled to focus on the heap of documents cradled in her arms – the medical records she had been assigned to file. She desperately needed to get home and check on the scroll. Her mind was so distracted, in fact, that she accidentally dropped the entire stack of papers onto the floor.

Grumbling, she kneeled down to pick up the scattered papers. "Sakura?" said a voice. She glanced up and noticed that the receptionist was now standing before her, a middle-aged woman with a black bob-cut. "I think you should take the rest of the day off," the woman said seriously and eyeing the papers Sakura dropped.

With a pang of embarrassment, Sakura straightened up and said, "No, I'll stay. It's only thirty minutes into my shift. I promise it won't happen again." She couldn't afford to lose this volunteer position. If she did, she might as well kiss her chances of landing a paying hospital job goodbye.

"It's fine, Sakura. I'm just... worried about you today."

"What?" Sakura asked, maybe a little too quickly. She was still feeling on-edge after her talk with Kakashi.

The receptionist crouched down and helped Sakura gather the papers. "You're a very hard worker. But... not to be rude, but have you seen yourself lately?"

Taken by surprise, Sakura said, "Um... No?" She honestly couldn't remember the last time she'd spared a glance at herself in any reflective surface. She'd woken up too tired and sore to think about trivial things like how she looked.

"Well," said the receptionist as she folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. "You don't look good. I think you're burning yourself out." She put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Go home and rest. And don't come back until next week."

***

When she arrived home, Sakura raced up the stairs to her bedroom and pried open her underwear drawer. To her relief, after quickly undoing the transformation disguise, she found that the scroll was safely tucked away in the drawer just as she left it. But Sakura didn't hold her breath just yet because even though the scroll  _looked_ safe, someone could be aware of its existence.

She made a mental note to purchase supplies for booby traps.

Sakura then realized she didn't know what to do with herself. It was only four o'clock so her parents weren't home from work yet. And Sasuke already designated tonight as a night off, so she wouldn't be seeing him as usual. So… what could she do instead?

Well, first off, she needed to get out of her grimy work clothes and clean up. Sakura stripped off her civilian garments and tossed them, along with her training gear, into her laundry hamper. Her eyes were immediately drawn to her swollen ankles and bruised legs once her feet were bare. Reminded of the hospital receptionist's comment, she hesitantly stepped in front of her full-length mirror once she'd shed her clothes and gaped at the disaster before her.

Her medical ninja alarm bells blared in her ears when she caught sight of all the bruises, scabs and scrapes covering her body. And when she saw her face, she couldn't peel her eyes away.

She had scratches on her cheeks and her complexion was pale and sunken. Her eyes were glazed over and bloodshot and accompanied by deep and heavy bags that made her look like an ex-convict.  _Geez_. Sakura never would have looked like this the last time she was this age.

Maybe the receptionist, whatever her name was, had a point. Her physical body was a frighteningly accurate depiction of all the stress and exhaustion weighing her down.

She turned away and reluctantly decided it was time to tend to her body.  _This will make me more productive in the long run,_ she reasoned with an affirmative nod.  _Besides, I'm sure even the most badass superheroes have benefited from good a night of R and R. Hell, Tsunade-sama gets away with spending her weekends in casinos and that doesn't stop her from being a legend. In fact, that's kind of what makes her a legend._ With a chuckle, she rifled through the shelves for a clean towel.

She ran a bath and in the meantime gathered a generous amount of medical chakra to her core and allowed it to flow through her body, healing her extremities and easing the pain in her sore muscles and tendons. Sakura let out a long sigh of relief she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She figured that since she wasn't training tonight and she had no missions this weekend, she could afford to use up a little of her chakra on herself.

By the time she was finished her bath and blow-drying her hair, Sakura's parents were home and calling her down for a hot take-out meal. They were ecstatic to have her in the house for such an extended period of time. "It doesn't even feel like you're living here these days," her mother said with a drawn-out sigh. "We never see you!"

Sakura was fortunate to have such supportive parents. And with a pang of sadness, she reminded herself that, in this world, she was fortunate to have parents at all.

 _That's it,_ Sakura thought.  _I'm spending the night with them._

She talked with her parents at the dinner table for over an hour after they finished eating. She asked them about their days and described her volunteer work at the hospital. They were impressed (but not terribly surprised) when she mentioned her interest in the medical arts and how she would likely pursue a career in the field. Then they played a board game, drank tea, and went up to bed. Her parents were in high spirits and Sakura felt a million times more content than she did earlier that day. And in that moment of relaxation, Sakura wished she could forget about the mission and just live her life like this. A life of simplicity and bliss.

A life she would almost certainly never have.

When she returned to her bedroom, Sakura sat cross-legged on her bed and closed her eyes in preparation for a meditative exercise she hadn't practiced in ages. Basking in the sensation of her chakra rippling through the networks beneath her skin, she concentrated on slowing down its circulation to expend less energy. This technique was particularly helpful in not only increasing the amount of chakra in her body, but also in taking some strain off of the organs involved in chakra circulation. Only an hour later, she could feel her body's chakra supply reach its maximum capacity.

 _Excellent_.

And after a good night's sleep, when her mind was sharp and awake, she would count out the money she made on Team Seven's D-Ranked missions and run some errands. This weekend off would definitely not go to waste.

After slipping under the covers and flicking on the bedside light, Sakura pulled out a notepad and jotted down the items she needed to purchase.

_-More poisonous plants, herbs_

_-Medical encyclopedia_

_-Med. supplies: Needles & stitches, toxin extract, test tubes, syringes, beakers_

_-Jutsu-resistant safe?_

_-Booby traps_

She gazed down at the list, fully aware that she couldn't afford half the things on it. But hey, a girl could dream, couldn't she? And with that thought in mind, she hastily added one more item.

_-Weapons (if on sale)_

And then she succumbed to the allure of a long sleep.

***

But it wasn't long enough. Sakura was abruptly roused far earlier than she desired by someone shaking her arm.

Her ninja instincts were instantly activated. She reached under her pillow for her kunai and pointed it at her mother's throat.

_Wait._

"Mother?!" Sakura gasped, immediately dropping the knife. "I'm... I'm so sorry! You took me by surprise!"

Mebuki looked petrified. "B-bad dream?" she stammered and taking a step back.

"Uh, yes," Sakura lied and stowing the knife back under her pillow. "Sorry."

"It's fine!" Mebuki said and forcing a smile. "Well, someone is at the door and is demanding to see you. They said you would know why."

Sakura jumped to her feet.  _What?_  she thought, a ripple of fear spreading through her. Was it someone who knew about the scroll? Someone from the future? Throat clenched, Sakura pulled on her white bath robe and slippers. When her mother turned to exit the room, Sakura snatched for one of her poison-laced knifes and clasped it beneath the fabric of her robe before heading to the stairs.

She made her way down slowly, the flimsy, wooden boards creaking with each step, and when she reached the bottom, she found no one in the front entrance of her house. Were they hiding? Was this an ambush?

She drew her knife and held it at her hip as she cautiously ventured towards the front door. And then she felt a presence on her right.

_A-ha. Now I've got you._

Wasting no time, she spun around, raising her weapon...

A hand caught her wrist.

"You haven't worked on those reflexes, have you?" said a very familiar voice.

" _What_ are you doing here?!" Sakura spluttered. What on earth was Sasuke doing in her house? She was quite relieved it wasn't an impostor, but seeing him here like this was so unexpected and so... well,  _wrong_. Something about Sasuke's dark features and rigid, stoic demeanor simply  _clashed_ with her mother's teacup collection and lace doilies in the sitting room behind him.

He pressed down hard on her palm, forcing her to release the knife which fell to the ground with a clatter. "You've had your day off," he said calmly. "So today we're training." Sakura pulled her hand out of his grasp and picked up the kunai.  _The nerve of him showing up like this and giving me a heart attack..._ "Thank you for the tea," he added over her shoulder.

"Anytime, Sasuke!" came Mebuki's voice from somewhere in the kitchen. Sakura whirled around, her jaw hanging open, and then she narrowed her eyes in the direction of her teammate.

"How long have you been here?" she asked, her heartrate rising. Did Sasuke seriously have tea with her mother?  _What the hell…_

He shrugged.

"Sasuke told me all about your extracurricular training," her mother answered, appearing at the entrance of the kitchen with a fond smile. "And he  _very politely_  asked if he could take you out for the day. And I said yes, of course, so you'd better go get yourself ready!"

Sakura's wide eyes flickered between her mother and the smirking Sasuke next to her and wondered what exactly transpired between them.

She also had a hunch that she was being manipulated.

"All right," she said, a little baffled. "I'll go get dressed." She could hear her mother chatting with her teammate down the stairs as she pulled on her training gear and grabbed the shopping list on her bedside table. When she returned, Sasuke was standing at the door with his bag slung over his shoulders.

"Let's go," he said a little impatiently while turning the handle.

"One sec," she said and running to the kitchen to grab a fruit for breakfast. When she returned, she added, "Um, I was actually planning to run a couple of errands this morning. So… I'll meet you at the training grounds in about thirty minutes."

"What errands?" he asked, and shooting her a disbelieving glare. Before she had a chance to answer, he snatched the shopping list right out of her hand and started scanning it.

"I can't afford most things on here," she said hurriedly and with a pang of embarrassment. "But at the very least I need to stop for some plants and medical supplies."

"Weapons? I let you use my weapons," he mumbled, ignoring her previous comment.

"Yeah but I want to have more of my own. You know, for when I train by myself."

He frowned. "And what are the traps for?"

"I think someone is trying to get into my bedroom. Long story." He raised his eyebrows at this but didn't ask any other questions.

"All right," Sasuke said with finality in his tone and moving past the threshold. He shoved the list in his pocket. "We'll stop for your plants and medical supplies on the way to the training grounds."

"Wait –," she started, but he was already on the move.

***

The two of them maneuvered through the crowded main road of the village at a rather brisk pace. It was the weekend so everyone seemed to be out and about today, making the road a little more difficult to navigate through. Sakura brushed shoulders with and received angry glares from several people, and it didn't take her long to realize that many of those glares (particularly those from females around her age) had to do with who she was walking with.

She managed to get needles, stitches, syringes, and toxin extract. Unfortunately, her tiny budget restricted her from purchasing test tubes and beakers, so she just looked up at the shining glass vials and let out a long sigh. "Do you need those?" Sasuke asked while nodding towards the supplies she was gazing at.

She quickly turned away. "No," she lied. "Just... maybe I'll grab them next time."

***

Sakura realized that there was no way she could take Sasuke into the flower shop with her. Not with Ino there. If Ino saw the two of them together, their friendship, and Sakura's only chance of getting medical herbs, would be in jeopardy.

"Sasuke, do you mind waiting outside?" she asked as politely as she could. He glanced at her suspiciously. "I need to get a special deal on these herbs from Ino," she added while bowing her head apologetically. "And she probably doesn't want other potential customers knowing about it. You know, it's bad for business if she offers specials to everyone."

_And she would rip my throat out if she saw me with you._

"Fine," he said and exhaling deeply through his nose. "I'll go set up at the training grounds. Don't take long." And with that, he stalked off.

The bells over the door chimed as Sakura entered the shop. When Ino saw her, she pulled out a package from under the counter. "I knew you'd drop in again today," she said with a coy smile. "You didn't come by yesterday, so I figured it was only a matter of time."

Sakura returned the smile. "I owe you so much for this," she said.

Ino waved her hand dismissively. "No, no, it's fine."

Sakura collected her new package of herbs and turned to exit the shop. "Well, I don't mean to leave so abruptly, but I've got to be somewhere today. Next time I promise to stay longer."

"Where are you going with Sasuke?"

 _Damn it._  She might have glimpsed him through the window.

"Training," Sakura answered quickly. "With our team."

"He doesn't live on this side of the village. What is he doing around here?"

Sakura suddenly hated how perceptive her friend was. "Kakashi-sensei wanted us to run errands," she lied.

"Okay," Ino said with a shrug. "I was just curious. Later, Forehead." To Sakura's relief, Ino was smiling at her again.

But was that a fake smile? Ino had the power to make anyone in her presence feel as socially confused as Sai. Nonetheless, Sakura returned the smile and scurried out of the shop.

Sakura and Ino always had a playful rivalry over Sasuke's attention when they were kids. And if the two girls had any chance of maintaining their friendship, it was of utmost importance that nothing serious blossomed between Sasuke and either of the girls.

If Sakura continued spending so much time alone with him, it would inevitably seem like something more serious than Ino could tolerate was developing. So if Sakura wanted to keep those medical herbs coming, she would have to limit the amount of time she spent with Sasuke in public settings.

But as far as the seriousness of her feelings towards him were concerned, Sakura knew she had broken that unwritten rule years ago. Broken it beyond repair.


	7. Turning Tables

After a full day of chakra control, agility, and strength training exercises, to put it lightly, Sakura was exhausted. She stopped only briefly for a snack around noon, but otherwise, she'd spent eight consecutive hours immersed in the ninja arts today.

Despite how much pain she was in, Sakura was certain that her abilities were improving. Her newly-healed muscles allowed her to lift heavier objects for longer periods of time, throw weapons farther with increased accuracy, and her ever-growing reserve of chakra took twice as long to deplete compared to a week ago. She still had a lot of work to do, but at least she was getting somewhere.

Sasuke slumped down next to his bag, breathing heavily. He also seemed worn out after the long day. "That last drill was great," he said. Sakura designed an exercise where they stuck shuriken to the soles of their feet and then, with just the perfect release of chakra, kicked the weapons at a target. After an hour of using stationary targets, Sakura started tossing other shuriken into the air for him to hit. "We're going to have to work on that one tomorrow."

Sakura smiled and folded her arms. "So we're training again tomorrow, are we?"

He glanced over at her with raised eyebrows. "Why wouldn't we be?"

She shrugged. "Well maybe I have better things to do," she answered sarcastically, still smiling. But her comment seemed to confuse her teammate.

Sasuke wasn't known for his sense of humour. Or social skills in general for that matter.

He stood up. "You're benefitting from this training as much as I am – maybe even more. Just think of where you'll be in a week from now at this rate."

Sakura stared at him. Her sarcasm clearly went right over his head. "No, I meant –"

"We're doing this again tomorrow," Sasuke deadpanned defensively. Then he turned to pack up his bag. Sakura made a mental note to avoid using sarcasm the next time he was in one of these weird, intense moods. "For me, training with you is the only thing worth my time these days," he mumbled from where he was crouched by his bag.

_Oh?_

Sakura perked up, her heartrate quickening.  _The powerful, evil Sasuke Uchiha, one of the biggest threats to the world I left behind, is this interested in learning from_ me  _huh?_  The boy with famous, unrivaled abilities felt that training with an ordinary ninja with some skills in medical ninjutsu and slightly above-average chakra control was the only thing worth his time?

Her face and ears were suddenly feeling hot.

"So... tomorrow?"

Pulled back to earth, Sakura blinked and fought against the tightening in her chest. "All right," she said, shrugging, and trying to seem as nonchalant as one possibly could after receiving praise from the Uchiha prodigy. She turned to grab her own bag and then reminded herself that  _this_  Sasuke wasn't an evil threat to the village. Sure he was a prodigy, but right now he was just a young ninja-in-training looking to learn new skills.

And when he mastered everything that Sakura had to teach him, he would move on in pursuit of new sources of power.

_He'll get over this phase – this is just a temporary interest._

***

Sakura knew before she opened her eyes that someone was in her bedroom.

From curled up under the blankets of her bed, she heard a faint rustling near the doorway. And once her mind was functional and her senses alert, she recognized a distinct chakra presence.

The impostor was a ninja.

Heart pounding, Sakura very carefully reached for the kunai under her pillow. Not taking any chances, she fired the knife in the direction of the chakra signature.

With a resounding  _thunk_  the knife struck the wall, missing the target. But it seemed to surprise the intruder enough to drop whatever they were holding onto her floor with a crash. Sakura summersaulted out of bed, making a beeline for the weapon holster on her desk. In one fluid motion, she snatched another knife from it and flicked on the small bedside light.

"Who are –," she started but she froze mid-sentence when she caught a glimpse of the impostor's face.

"Sakura?!" called Mebuki from the bedroom down the hallway. "What's going on in there?"

"It's fine, mom! Just a nightmare!" Sakura answered while striding up to the now-petrified impostor and pinning him to the wall with her arm.

"Sasuke. What the  _hell_  are you doing in my room?" Sakura hissed and holding the knife to his throat. She studied him intensely, including his mannerisms and chakra signature, to ensure that this wasn't a substitution disguise or a genjutsu.

He passed her brief assessment. This was Sasuke all right.

"I was –"

"Didn't I  _tell_  you I thought someone was sneaking into my bedroom? Didn't I  _tell_  you I wanted to set up traps in here to stop situations like this from happening? What made you think it would be fine for you to barge right in yourself?"

She glared at him, livid from the rush of emotional turmoil he caused her.

"I... hadn't thought of that," he said and carefully pulling her hand away from his neck. His wide eyes were flickering between her face and the kunai.

Sakura stepped back and put her head in her hands. "Why are you in my room?" she asked again, quietly this time, trying to calm down and contain her anger.

"I remembered what you said. What you said about the intruders and the traps," he said, his voice shakier than usual. He was still pressing himself against the wall even though Sakura had released him. "Since you weren't awake to train yet, I figured I wouldn't waste any time. So I started... uh..."

Through her fingers, Sakura glimpsed the thin wires around her door. She followed them with her eyes and realized that they were part of an interconnected system of wires lining the walls of her entire room. "You're setting up traps?" she asked while lowering her hands.

Sasuke exhaled sharply from his nose. "Yeah," he said, avoiding her eyes.

Letting out a deep breath and massaging her temples, Sakura tried to determine how she felt about this situation. She was conflicted between feeling gracious and pissed off. "Um, thanks," she said slowly. "But sneaking in my room like that was..."

"Not a good idea. I get it," he said quickly.

Sakura nodded. "Good," she sighed while trying to wrap her head around what was going on. She walked over to her night table to get her water glass. "Well, I guess I –"

"Don't touch that," Sasuke said sharply and raising his hand in warning. "I've set a trap there."

"What?" she gasped and immediately retracting her hand. "How many traps did you lay out in here?"

"Twelve."

Baffled, she whirled around to assess his work. "Where are the others then?" she asked.

He straightened up. "I'll walk you through them when you're ready to go," he said with a brisk nod in her direction.

His comment reminded Sakura that she was wearing a light nightgown that wasn't the most conservative or practical outfit for ninja business. "Fine. Give me a minute," she said and feeling her face flush as she turned away.

Then Sasuke, despite his general inability to pick up on social cues, seemed to realize that he needed to leave. "Right," he said and creeping out into the hallway while she got dressed.

***

Sasuke pointed out all the traps he laid out in her room and Sakura politely asked him to remove several of them (specifically, the traps he laid in places she regularly accessed such as her personal bathroom entrance and the closet door). Just before they finished, an idea occurred to her. "Can you please put one, er... around  _this_  drawer?" Sakura asked and nodding towards the underwear drawer of her dresser.

"What's in there?" Sasuke asked while raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing you'd be interested in," she answered quickly and tucking a loose strand of her shoulder-length hair behind her ear.

_If Sasuke took one look in there, he would definitely agree with me._

He cast her a skeptical glance but set up a trap nonetheless and mumbled something that sounded like "Weird-ass stalker." After her room was as ninja-proofed as it could be while still being functional, Sakura forced her teammate to exit by her window so her parents wouldn't see him leave her bedroom, packed her bag, ate a quick breakfast, and met him at the training grounds as they had arranged.

But this training session wasn't quite like the others.

Sakura was miffed to find that the morning's incidents didn't seem to faze Sasuke at all. Despite how she'd ironically dreamed of getting this boy into her room for most of her life, now that he had a growing presence in her personal life, Sakura was just feeling resentful. Not only did Sasuke invade her privacy, but he set up traps that prevented her from accessing her own belongings without consulting her first.

What if, during his snooping, he had stumbled upon the time travel scroll? His pushiness was making her vulnerable.

_He's getting too close… too comfortable…_

Sasuke was now explaining how to hold a bow but all Sakura could hear was his patronizing tone.

Sasuke seemed to notice her faraway expression and paused. "Well?" he asked irritably while raising his eyebrows.

 _Whoops._  "Sorry, what was the question?"

His dark eyes narrowed. "You didn't hear a word I said, did you?" Sakura shook her head. He rolled his eyes but started again.

Unfortunately, the rift between them didn't end there.

Two hours later, the high branch Sakura was standing on in a training exercise snapped and she abruptly found herself plummeting to the ground, Sasuke's bow flying out of her hand. She managed to brace her fall by rolling as she landed but she overestimated the amount of force her skinny ankles could withstand. Her right ankle twisted awkwardly when she landed on it and it immediately began to throb.

"I caught the bow," Sasuke said when he emerged from the tangle of bushes ahead of her. "It isn't damaged." Then he noticed his training partner's crumpled position on the ground. "Heal yourself and get up. I want to get through a few more drills after this one."

Just like that, Sakura's temper reached its limit.

And she  _knew_  her emotions shouldn't take the reins and she  _knew_ she'd better just take a deep breath and hold her tongue.

But she didn't.

"I'm done," Sakura said flatly. "You can finish the drill yourself."

Sasuke blinked. "You don't like archery?" he asked, clearly perplexed by her reaction.

Sakura stood up and pumped just enough green chakra to her ankle to walk. She strode towards the tree stumps where her bag was left open on the ground. "I'm done training with you today," she deadpanned without sparing him a glance.

Sakura reached the bag and started shoving her measly collection of weapons inside it, preparing to depart from the training grounds. But when she motioned to grab one of her kunai, a blue sandal reached it before her hand did. Stepping down on her knife, Sasuke asked in an icy tone, "What are you doing?"

"I'm leaving," she answered simply. "Going home for the day. I've had enough."

"Enough of what?" he asked.

Standing up and squarely facing her teammate, Sakura hissed, "Of  _you_. You haven't apologized to me for this morning. You don't give me any space. And you've been patronizing me since we got here – treating me like a tool. Like I'm just another weapon in your bag." She stopped herself, wondering if what she was saying made any sense at all. She also realized that she would probably hit some sore spots if she didn't get a hold of herself.

Sasuke folded his arms and stared at her seriously. He seemed to be contemplating something, and right when Sakura thought she was getting through to him he said, "That's it?"

Fuming, she snatched up her bag and started marching towards the village.

Until Sasuke appeared in front of her and blocked her path.

"Excuse me," she spat without meeting his eye.

"You're mad at me," he noted. His casual tone didn't sit well with her, but Sakura tried not to linger on that. She took a deep breath.

"Look, Sasuke. I'm not like you. With this revenge stuff. I need some space to figure things out on my own." His expression was unreadable and he made no motion to speak. "I'm in a very different situation than you are. My revenge is... a little more fresh and confusing. I don't know how many people I need to kill. I don't know if I'll ever be able to do it."

"You're weak. I'm helping you get stronger," Sasuke said flatly with a hint of coldness in his tone. His jaw was clenched and Sakura realized she was probably treading on thin ice.

But this wasn't about him. This was about  _her_  mission. And it was dawning on her now that training with Sasuke was a terrible idea. If she was going to stop him from betraying the village one day, she needed to be  _stronger_  than him. If he trained with her and molded her every skill, she had no chance of outsmarting him. And no chance of saving him.

And besides, spending so much time with Sasuke increased her risk of being blinded by her emotions. She couldn't afford to be his puppet. Tsunade sent her here to make some changes. Changes weren't going to happen if she kept following him around like she used to.

"I need to be alone," she said firmly. "I need to focus on my own revenge."

"I used to think that way too," he countered. "But I've realized that if I want power, I need to seek it out."

"This is different," she snapped. "I need to work alone."

"You're wrong. You just need –"

"Stop! You're annoying me, Sasuke!"

"What?"

Sakura stopped in her tracks. She could hardly believe the words coming out of her mouth. Could the tables have turned so much that she was using Sasuke's own lines against him? She'd lost count how many times he called her annoying in her old life.

Even on that dreaded night… the night he knocked her unconscious, left her body on a park bench, and betrayed the Hidden Leaf village. The night Sakura had worn her heart on her sleeve and had it torn to pieces.

Annoying.  _Annoying._

She repeated the words quietly, but not to the Sasuke who stood before her.

"You're  _annoying_."


	8. The Presence

"I'll follow you wherever you want me to go! I just can't bear to lose you again. I don't want to have any more regrets."

After a long pause, Sasuke glanced at her. "Do you really  _know_  what I want?" he asked, a manic smile tugging at his lips. Blood streamed down his face from his overworked, bloodshot eyes.

"I don't care. I'll do whatever–"

"I am going to destroy Konoha!" he cried out, breaking into a full grin. His crimson eyes were wide and hungry. " _That's_  what I want. Will you, Sakura, betray Konoha for me?" A cold laugh escaped him as Sasuke finally turned to face the cloaked girl standing across the stream.

"Yes," she answered firmly. "If that's what you need me to do."

"Prove it!" he spat. He pointed to the red-haired girl sprawled on the ground beside him. "Finish her off. She is no use to me now and you would make a fine replacement."

Sakura pulled out a knife and leaped over the stream, approaching the girl on the ground, a girl who she would later learn was named Karin. When their eyes met, something in the girl's stare indicated that she knew Sakura's true intentions.

She raised the knife and her hand started trembling.  _This is it_ , Sakura thought and squeezing her eyes shut.  _This is where it all ends._

"What's wrong, Sakura?" a deep voice whispered from just beside her ear. "Can't you do it?" Sasuke was now standing directly behind her, mere inches away.

It was now or never.

As she started twisting her body around and the tears spilled from her eyes, Sakura reminded herself:  _This isn't the same Sasuke I used to know. If I kill him now... everything will be over!_

But she was too late. The chirping of Sasuke's Chidori drowned out the red-haired girl's straggled cry of warning. The lightning blade in his hand was aimed for her heart.

***

Sakura sprang up in her bed so abruptly that she nearly toppled onto the floor. Her chest was rising and falling with each bated breath.

She looked down at her shaking hand. No knife. It was a dream.

_Not a dream. A memory._

She suddenly felt nauseous.

Curling herself into a tight ball and pushing her hair away from her face, Sakura fought to clear her mind. Even if it wasn't just a dream, sometimes it felt like her past life was nothing but a mess of illusions and nightmares.

But that was no nightmare. No, that was her brain giving her a vivid play-by-play of one of the more dramatic times that she and Sasuke had tried to murder each other.

A banging on the door sounded through her bedroom. Sakura jumped and fumbled for her kunai under the pillow. "Sakura?" her mother's voice called from the hallway. "Are you all right, Sakura? Why did you lock your door?"

"Oh," she said hoarsely and dropping the kunai. "Y-yeah, fine. Just a sec, I'll get it." Sakura hadn't told her parents about the booby traps yet and until she did, they couldn't be in her room unattended (or they might fall prey to them).

Sakura unlocked the door and Mebuki strode inside. "You were groaning in your sleep," she said. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"Yeah," Sakura answered with a small, tired nod.

"Well, you'd better stop eating so close to your bedtime. That causes nightmares, you know," her mother said seriously and raising a lecturing finger. "Anyways, I didn't realize you had another day off today."

Sakura was dragged out of her dazed slumber. "What? No I don't!" It was Monday. She glanced at the clock. Training with her team started in three minutes. "Damn it!" she cried. She must have slept though her alarm.

"I thought you were spending another day with your friend Sasuke," her mother said as Sakura dashed across her room in search of clean training clothes. "He's a nice kid. Very grown up for his age."

"Uh huh," Sakura said while rooting through her drawer for a pair of spandex shorts to wear under her red training dress.

"I knew his parents when they were alive, you know," Mebuki continued despite Sakura's distractedness. "They were quiet but good-natured people. I spoke with his mother several times when you were both just enrolling for school and before, well... that  _incident_  happened. Such a tragic thing to happen to a young boy." She paused, staring into the distance, seemingly lost in her own thoughts.

"Yeah," Sakura said quietly. She finally stopped her rummaging and turned to face her mother, her arms filled with clean clothes. "Well, I'm just going to get dressed now and then I'll be off."

Mebuki snapped out of her trance. "Oh yes. I'll go prepare you something to eat." She straightened up. "Sorry, a lot of things have been on my mind lately. You're growing up too fast, you know. First you become a full-fledged ninja, then you get your first job, you stay out half the nights, and now you have a  _boy_  following you around."

Sakura feigned a smile.

_Ha._

_Not anymore._

***

Sakura decided to take a shortcut to the training grounds - a path through an alley between two tall business buildings. Most young ninjas stuck to the main road or the rooftops. But Sakura was starting her  _second_ lifetime's worth of trips to the training grounds, so she had quite the arsenal of discovered shortcuts.

Though she normally saved this one for when she was extra late. The alley was pitch black and rather creepy.

But today she was  _beyond_ late so she sucked in a breath and bolted into the dark, chilly passage.

Halfway through the alley, Sakura sensed another chakra presence. She shrugged it off since she was nearing the training grounds; it would be unusual  _not_  to sense chakra at this point.

_THUMP._

She stopped in her tracks and whirled around. Someone had, ungracefully, landed on the ground somewhere behind her in the alley. Startled, Sakura drew a fistful of shuriken, and just as she brought them up to eye-level, she felt it.

A new presence. A presence that made the air go still and her blood run cold. Her senses told her that the new presence was somewhere behind her, cornering her between it and the person who loudly landed in the alley.

Sakura was trapped.

She peered over her shoulder towards the new, terrible chakra source, but couldn't make out a figure through the darkness.

The new chakra was familiar. It was chakra she had encountered in her old life.

Chakra that didn't belong here.

"T-Tsunade-sama?" Sakura called out quietly before she could stop herself.

And then the presence disappeared.

After several seconds of squinting and scanning, Sakura determined that the presence was indeed gone and so she turned her attention back to the original disturbance. The source of the noise. She took a small step forward. "Hello?" she called bravely, her voice echoing through the alley. But there was no answer.

She took a few more steps towards where she presumed the person must be standing, her heart pounding harder with each step. She couldn't sense any chakra emitting from the person, but well-trained ninjas could easily conceal their chakra signatures.

She knew someone was there. But why weren't they responding?

Her curiosity got the better of her and she pulled out a pocket flashlight. This device would expose her location, but she couldn't fight someone she could hardly sense in the pitch dark.

The light flicked on. No one was there.

Then she felt something under her foot.

Sakura sprang back and aimed the light at the ground. It revealed a hand attached to body lying face-down in the alley. She nearly dropped the light with shock. The body must have fallen from somewhere above the alley, explaining the ungraceful noise it made when it landed. She crouched down and carefully turned it over.

The good news was that he wasn't an enemy. He was wearing a Jōnin vest and had a leaf engraved on his forehead protector. He was a ninja from Konoha.

The bad news was that he was dead. His eyes were open wide and his face was stained with blood from the perilous fall. Instinctively, Sakura checked his pulse and vital signs but as she anticipated, they were unresponsive.

In fact, her advanced medical expertise led her to the realization that the man's vital signs had been unresponsive for minutes. He was dead before he hit the ground.

***

Needless to say, Sakura was extremely late for training.

She'd hurried to the emergency wing of the hospital and debriefed her examination of the dead Jōnin's vital signs to the medical personnel there. The doctors seemed alarmed at first, probably by Sakura's proactive response and also by the situation altogether, but they expressed their gratitude before sending her to the Hokage Tower to file a report.

When she arrived, Sakura half-expected to find Tsunade sitting among the Jōnin bodyguards, but instead she found old man Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, sitting on the largest chair in the room. It was surreal to see him there, alive, and explaining the paperwork Sakura now had to fill out. Little did he or anyone else in the village know, if events unfolded as they did in Sakura's past life, his days were numbered.

She completed the report much faster than anyone in the room anticipated. "What... excellent penmanship for a young girl," one of the Jōnin noted as he scanned over the document. An ANBU Black Ops team was sent to collect the body and investigate the alley. They returned before Sakura had left the tower and reported no traces of the mysterious chakra presence Sakura described. Then she was dismissed from the tower so that the Hokage and a small team could discuss the matter in privacy.

_What on earth was that about?_

On her way back towards the training grounds (along the main road this time), Sakura thought hard about the strange presence and what the whole bizarre situation could mean. She certainly didn't recall this incident happening in her past life.

After all, if it  _had_  happened, she wouldn't have found out about it. She never used that alley the last time she was this age. So there was no reason to jump to the conclusion that the unusual presence had anything to do with her... or was there?

What really struck Sakura was how familiar that sinister chakra had been. And she realized that she yelled out Tsunade's name not only because the chakra reminded her of someone in her previous life, but because the chakra seemed to  _resemble_  Tsunade's in some way. And that just didn't add up.

She found Kakashi and Naruto sparring at their usual training spot. Right as she arrived, Naruto slipped on a patch of dirt, sending his handful of shuriken straight up into the air.  _Shit,_ Sakura thought and realizing that Naruto's weapons were now descending to where he was spread-eagled on the ground. Both she and Kakashi fired their own shuriken at Naruto's to deflect them. With many  _clangs_  of metal striking metal, they managed to save Naruto from his own weapons in just the nick of time.

"Thanks sensei," Naruto said with a relieved sigh. "And... oh! Sakura-chan! My hero!" He jumped up from where he was sprawled on the ground and sprinted over to her. "Glad to see that my  _entire_  team hasn't ditched me today," he added with a frown.

"Sasuke isn't here?" she asked.

"No. He asked to skip our session today," said Kakashi, who was approaching duo. "Where were you this morning, Sakura?"

Before answering, Sakura paused to consider whether Sasuke had ever skipped training like this in her past life. But her mind didn't linger on the question for long because she began describing her unexpected morning adventure.

Kakashi's expression was indiscernible under his mask, as it usually was. "Why did you take that path?"

Sakura shrugged, not understanding why Kakashi would ask her about that detail over the others. "I've taken that alley before and haven't had any problems."

"A similar situation happened there a while ago and most people have avoided it since," he answered.

"Oh. I didn't realize," Sakura said honestly. She was never aware of that, so how would she have known to avoid the alley?

Regardless, she got the sneaking suspicion that Kakashi found her actions unusual.

***

Sakura only trained with Kakashi and Naruto for one hour before she left for a volunteer shift at the hospital. For once, the the mind-numbing tasks felt comforting because she was so emotionally drained.

Midway through her shift, Sakura's supervisor informed her that word of the mysterious alley incident had swept through the hospital. "The nurses told us that you handled the situation tactfully and in accordance with standard medical ninja protocol. Needless to say, you're starting to get a reputation around here," she said with an impressed nod.

"Thank you," Sakura said while bowing deeply and struggling to contain her smile.

_Maybe things will pick up for me around here after all._

After her shift, Sakura ate dinner with her family, cleaned up, and then she wondered what to do next. Normally she would meet with Sasuke to train around this time. With a small pang of regret, she realized that he probably wouldn't have any interest in training with her for a while. As satisfying as it had felt to be harsh with him the previous night, her words were meant for the Sasuke of her past life.  _This_ Sasuke, on the other hand, hadn't actually wronged her yet.

For a moment she contemplated going out to find him but quickly staunched the idea.  _No_ , she told herself.  _This is for the best._ As she had already reasoned, spending too much time training with Sasuke might inhibit her ability to stop him from leaving the village in the future.

But when Sasuke didn't show up for their mission the next morning, Sakura grew a little concerned.

She asked Kakashi if he had any idea of Sasuke's whereabouts. "He got special permission to skip out on our mission today," Kakashi said flatly, without any intention to elaborate. After rescuing three stray cats, Sakura worked, ate dinner, cleaned up, and sat in her room restlessly. To busy herself, she organized her growing herb collection, added to the list of supplies she needed to purchase, and practiced controlling her medical chakra.

But when Sasuke didn't show up for the third day in a row, Sakura became worried. "He got special permission  _again_?" she asked Kakashi before they set out to replace roof shingles on an office building.

"Yep," he said curtly before dropping the subject.

That evening, Sakura went to the training grounds to squeeze in some extra practice by herself. She threw weapons and worked on basic strength-training exercises. But it didn't take long for her to recall the many limitations of practicing without a training partner. For one thing, she was restrained to practicing techniques she already knew. Also, she wasted double the amount of time on the set-up and take-down.

As she was packing up for the night, Sakura scanned the grounds, hoping that Sasuke would jump out of the forest surrounding it. But he didn't.

_This isn't what I wanted._

If anything, Sasuke's total absence was setting her back in her mission. She was supposed to stop him from leaving the village, but now, for all she knew, he could have already left. Maybe he was already pursuing a new source of power now that Sakura told him to leave her alone?

And just maybe, in the worst case scenario, Orochimaru or one of his henchman already found Sasuke? Sakura shuddered at the thought. If that happened, her mission was as good as over. Failed. History would repeat itself and all of this would be for naught.

 _Okay. Screw this._ Sakura would find Sasuke if he didn't show up for their mission the next day. She had to apologize and convince him to train with her again. Because that was exponentially better than the alternative where Orochimaru, or some other dark source of power, lured him away from the village.

So the next day, when Sasuke didn't show up for their mission again and Kakashi wouldn't provide any explanation why, Sakura mentally prepared her course of action. After her volunteer shift, she would go to the Uchiha residential compound. The entire vicinity was abandoned since the massacre except for the small apartment where Sasuke lived. She would start at his place and search the rest of the compound from top to bottom. If she couldn't find him, she would go to the Hokage Tower and ask if Sasuke was assigned any missions.

And if all else failed, she would harass Kakashi for answers. He knew something about Sasuke's whereabouts that he wasn't telling her. But Sakura vowed to save this for a last resort since she was still getting the impression that Kakashi didn't trust her.

Team Seven's mission took longer than anticipated, so she rushed to her volunteer shift without eating lunch. Upon her arrival at the hospital Sakura was informed that today she would be directly assisting a doctor before a surgery by cleaning and polishing all of the tools the doctor would need. Although the work wasn't any less tedious than her usual filing and paperwork, Sakura considered this an upgrade. She was going to be in much closer proximity to the patients and medical procedures.

Despite her excitement over the small promotion, Sakura couldn't push the thoughts of her missing teammate from her mind. What if she couldn't find him? What if no one in the village knew where he was? Sakura would have to arrange a search party.  _Well, if anyone takes me seriously, that is_. It wasn't like she could warn people about Orochimaru's interest in Sasuke. In this life, she hadn't yet encountered and shouldn't even  _know_  about Orochimaru in the first place.

And as she was packing up at the end of her shift, Sakura's mind was flooded with thoughts of a new dilemma: how she would break into the Uchiha compound.

Surely Sasuke filled the place with traps. If he set up twelve in her bedroom, there were probably thousands of them hidden throughout the complex of abandoned houses.

She started to panic. Maybe she'd be better off skipping that plan and going straight to the Hokage?

Sakura's mind was racing through her options when she walked out the front doors of the hospital. Her mind was so preoccupied, in fact, that she almost didn't notice Sasuke sitting on a bench right beside the front door.

_Wait._

Genjutsu? Nope. It really was Sasuke.

Flabbergasted, she slowly approached him. He appeared to be in a bit of a trance, but when he finally noticed her, he sprang up to his feet. He was wearing a signature blue shirt paired with white shorts. "They wouldn't let me wait inside," he said.

"Wait?" Sakura repeated dumbly. Finding him here, right outside the hospital doors in broad daylight, was the  _last_  place she expected to find Sasuke after his complete disappearance for three days.

Sasuke straightened up and his eyes darted away from her blank stare. "I'm here to apologize," he said quickly, visibly struggling to force the words out. "For what happened."

Sakura was now beyond shocked. Frozen to the spot, she spluttered, " _You_  apologize? Why?"

His eyebrows furrowed at her response. "Oh. I thought you were upset by our... exchange the other night." He glanced down again and frowned.

Now Sasuke's facial expressions weren't easy to decipher because they were so few and far between, but since Sakura had known him her whole life, she could tell he was grappling with a slew of feelings.

He was now determinedly staring at the hospital wall. "I forgot that you've only been an avenger since recently. So it's not fair for me to expect you to think rationally yet."

Sakura was dumbfounded. Although this was possibly the most insulting apology she had ever received, apologizing was the last thing she expected Sasuke to do.

"I... um... forgive you," she said, still watching him in amazement. "And I'm sorry too. I guess I crossed a line." He acknowledged her comment with a curt nod. "So where have you been?" she asked, unable to conceal the anxiousness in her voice. He'd better have a bloody good explanation for making her spend her entire morning hyperventilating.

His eyebrows quirked with surprise. "Oh. I did a little research on my clan's history and asked to join an archaeological team dig up some artifacts that belonged to my ancestors. I told Kakashi and I assumed he would have filled you in." Sasuke's nonchalant tone kindled a new anger in Sakura's heart towards her sensei. If she'd known where Sasuke went, she would have been saved from so much unnecessary worry and stress.

"Okay," she said quietly, feeling a mixture of relief and frustration. When unwelcome tears welled up in her eyes, Sakura turned away and started walking towards the village core so her teammate wouldn't have a chance to clearly see her face. But to her dismay, Sasuke followed suit.

"So what makes you figure my revenge was triggered by something recent in my life?" she asked, attempting to change the subject.

It took a moment for Sasuke to answer. "You've changed," he said slowly. He tilted his head to gaze up at the clouds with his hands in his pockets. "You keep to yourself more than you used to." He shrugged. "And you're more focused."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "You noticed me in our Academy days, huh?" she asked while trying to contain her bewilderment.

"Of course," he answered a little too quickly. Sakura shot him a sideways glance to find he was determinedly staring ahead of them. "Weird hair," he mumbled.

 _I need to change the direction of this conversation and fast,_ Sakura thought as her heartrate began to skyrocket. It was becoming difficult to get a hold of herself. She chuckled nervously. "I've got a target painted on my head," she said, attempting to lighten the mood and relieve some of the tightness in her chest. "But pink hair  _does_  come in handy when fallen soldiers are seeking medical attention on a battlefield."

Sasuke stopped walking. "What?" she asked and spinning around to face him. He was rummaging through the bag he was holding.

"Medical. That reminds me," he said and pulling out a glass container. Sakura noticed its tiny spout and the measurements printed along its side. A beaker. "We made a couple of stops on the way back," he said while reaching back in the bag and taking out a box of test tubes. "These are good ones, apparently. You can't get them here."

Sakura's mouth fell open.  _He didn't... actually...?_

Noticing her unresponsiveness, Sasuke frowned and elaborated. "You said you wanted these, right? If these will make you stronger, you'll be a better asset to our team."

Sakura regretted comparing this Sasuke to the one in the future. The one in her nightmares.  _This_  was the Sasuke she was trying to save. Sure, he was a bit of an asshole at times and had hardly any skill in reading social cues, but this guy in front of her was really just a lonely, confused boy with kindness and fierce loyalty somewhere deep in his heart.

 _This_  was the Sasuke who she fell in love with.

He was looking at her expectantly. Sakura opened her mouth but no words came out. Instead, she felt a tear trickle down her face. Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed. "Wrong ones?" he asked and motioning to examine the glass items he was holding. But he hadn't even lifted them a fraction when Sakura threw her arms around him. Sasuke immediately tensed at her touch.

"They're perfect," she said quietly into his shoulder. "Thank you."

"Oh," he mumbled with a sigh of relief and relaxing slightly. "You're happy."

But before either of them seemed to process what was going on, Sakura sensed presences behind her and jumped away from Sasuke.

It was Team Ten. The newcomers were staring at the two of them with wide eyes. Shikamaru let out a low whistle. Chōji sniggered.

And Ino's expression was unreadable.

Source: mariyand-r, http://mariyand-r.tumblr.com/post/140410360109/this-drawing-was-inspired-by-wolf08s-fanfic-a


	9. Call to Action

After days of begging, pleading, and fist fights, Team Seven was granted permission to go on a C-Ranked mission.

Naruto, who was, unsurprisingly, the source of ninety percent of the begging and one hundred percent of the fist fights, whooped enthusiastically when the Third Hokage announced the news. "This mission will take several days to complete. Your team will act as bodyguards for a certain individual," he explained. And then Sarutobi beckoned for said individual to enter the room. Tazuna the bridge builder stumbled in with a half-empty bottle of alcohol in his hand.

"What's this?" he slurred as he stumbled through the door. "They're all a bunch of brats! Especially the short, blonde one with the stupid-looking face."

Needless to say, Tazuna and Naruto were not on very good terms from the get-go.

Sakura found herself dreading the mission. She knew what was going to happen. They were going to find out that Zabuza the Demon, a dangerous criminal who was way out of their leagues, was looking to assassinate the bridge builder on behalf of Gatō, a corrupted billionaire who had overthrown the entire Land of Waves.

Yes, there was evil to fight in the Land of Waves, but no evil that would alter the fate of her time travel mission.

Sakura was far more interested in searching the Leaf Village from top to bottom to ensure that the strange presence from the alley was indeed gone. And she wasn't sure if she felt comfortable being separated from the time travel scroll in her underwear drawer for so long.

But in the end, she decided against voicing her reluctance to embark on the mission. She didn't want Kakashi to find her any more suspicious than he already did, and Naruto would likely escalate to a whole new level of annoying if she backed out on Team Seven's most thrilling adventure yet.

***

"Yeah!" Naruto exclaimed as the five of them stepped out past the village's gates. "This is my first time ever leaving the village! I feel like an explorer!" he cried enthusiastically while punching his fists in the air.

Their client, Tazuna, shot Naruto a disapproving look. The guy really couldn't act any  _less_  like a bodyguard.

And so the long journey began.  _The faster we get this over with, the better,_  Sakura thought, trying to tune out Naruto and the bridge builder's bickering. She tightly clutched the straps of her backpack and pursed her lips. Well, there was no turning back. She would have to make the most of the mission and take every possible opportunity to sharpen her skills.

That was when Sakura spotted a puddle on the ground. She noticed Kakashi's eyes trained on it as well. It hadn't rained in days...

And that was when she remembered: they were all about to get ambushed.

_Sploosh!_

"Get ready to fight!" Sakura yelled and drawing another kunai to replace the one she had sent hurling into the puddle. Right on cue, the Demon Brothers sprang out of the water.

It appeared she would have an opportunity to exercise her skills sooner than anticipated.

"You brat!" one of the brothers growled through the metal mask covering the bottom half of his face. He lowered himself into a battle stance like a wild cat coiling its body to pounce.

"Stand back!" Kakashi instructed while flash-stepping between the Demon Brothers and his students. "Let me handle this!"

That was when the brothers attacked Team Seven's leader.

They shot metal chains out of large devices on their hands, which snaked around Kakashi's entire body before he had a chance to react. Then, while forcefully thrusting their arms to the side, the Demon Brothers reeled the chains back in and, through a cloud of dust, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Tazuna watched Kakashi's body get sliced apart. The sickening sounds of severing flesh and snapping bones echoed through the forest path.

 _Gross,_ Sakura thought while a disturbing chill crept up her spine.  _Good thing that isn't the real Kakashi._

"Sensei!" Naruto cried, all hope drained from his voice, as he stared in horror at the limbs of his leader landing in a pile on the road. He appeared to be fighting an urge to vomit. Sasuke, on the other hand, had a far better handle on his emotions and took this opportunity to strike. He leaped high in the air and fired fistfuls of weapons at the chains, pinning them to tree trunks and trapping the enemies. He landed directly on the brothers' arms, and by the time they realized what he was up to, he had dislodged the chains from the devices in their arms with one sweeping kick.

Sakura had to admit that, despite his inexperience with real missions, Sasuke's ninja instincts were impressive. He sure had a natural knack for acting under pressure.

Realizing that they were fighting a losing battle, the Demon Brothers decided to get down to business and attack their original target. "They're after the bridge builder!" Sakura warned her teammates. She raced over to Tazuna and stood before him protectively while loading chakra to her fists. Maximizing the few seconds she had to prepare a counterattack, Sakura lurched forward. But just before she could strike her deadly fists into the brothers' faces, an Uchiha crest appeared before her eyes.

"Stay behind me!" Sasuke yelled while throwing himself in front of her with his arms outstretched.

 _Shit_ , Sakura thought. Her body was already moving, and at this rate, her fists were going to collide with the back of her teammate's head.

She needed to change the course of her attack. And fast.

"Don't move!" she called out, before stepping up onto Sasuke's back and launching herself straight at the brothers. The unanticipated impact of Sakura's foot on the small of his back forced Sasuke down onto all fours, but he still gave Sakura enough leverage to propel her body up into the air.

"Shanarooo!" she cried as her chakra-loaded fists made contact with the brothers' masked faces with a sickening  _crack_. They flew back into a tree and landed in a crumpled heap.

Sakura admired her work for a moment before turning back to her teammates and clapping her hands dismissively. They were staring up at her with expressions of utter shock.

Naruto, who had apparently collapsed with fright during the battle after being nicked with one of the Demon Brother's poisonous blades, was the first to scramble to his feet. "Sakura-chan… how…," he started, but even he seemed to be at a loss for words. Sasuke remained silent, as he often did, though he looked like he wanted to say something but wasn't sure what.

Then Kakashi reappeared, revealing that he used a Transformation jutsu to conceal himself long before the Demon Brothers exposed themselves. "Well, well. It seems you guys didn't need me to butt in after all," he said.

Sakura proudly recalled how smoothly she and Sasuke handled the assault. Having him on her team would likely make her abilities seem less out of the ordinary. Like him, she would just seem like a prodigy with an aptitude for making quick decisions. Kakashi had no reason to suspect that she already had hundreds of C-Ranked missions under her belt.

"Thanks, sensei," Sakura answered cheerily while offering him a respectful bow. "I'm so relieved that you're safe after all. And nice decoy, Sasuke!" she added over her shoulder.

Sasuke scowled and shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his white shorts. "I  _wasn't_  a decoy," he shot back. "I was trying to protect you."

Sakura turned to face him and folded her arms. "By throwing yourself in front of me without any prepared counterattack? Sounds more like  _you_  needed the protecting," she retorted with a smirk. Sasuke looked so livid that steam may as well be shooting out of his ears. But instead, his scowl deepened and he turned his head away from her.

"All right, that's enough," Kakashi chimed in. "You both did well. Sasuke, good set up. And Sakura, excellent finish."

"Set up…?" Sasuke repeated through gritted teeth but Kakashi didn't seem to hear him.

Naruto wasn't handling the situation well. He was more clearly than ever before the dead-weight on the team. He drew a knife and embedded it deep into his own hand to flush out the poison while making a noble speech about how he vowed, on his self-inflicted injury, to protect the bridge builder at any cost.

"That's great, Naruto," Kakashi drawled. "But if you lose too much blood, you'll die."

Naruto proceeded to freak out so Sakura offered to heal him.

"Now, Sakura," said Kakashi and turning to face her once Naruto's new wound was healed. "How did you know Tazuna was their target?"

 _Oh crap_. Maybe she shouldn't have been so proactive in their battle.

"Um," she answered lamely, racking her brain for a believable explanation. "Instincts."

_Damn it. That's all I've got._

"Hm," Kakashi said and raising an eyebrow. Thankfully he didn't linger on the topic.

Kakashi went on to interrogating the Demon Brothers and getting Tazuna to admit that he was, in fact, a wanted man but he only had enough money to pay for C-Ranked bodyguards. None of this post-battle talk was new to Sakura until Kakashi turned back to her and made a surprising comment. "Sakura, please pay careful attention," he said seriously. "I wasn't expecting to ask this of you, but it sounds like we may need to rely on your medical expertise more than I was intending."

"Of course, sensei," Sakura said with a nod.

"And for that reason, I forbid you from engaging in front-line combat. What you did back there was great, but now we need to keep you safe. And in exchange, you keep us alive." Then he turned to Sasuke and Naruto. "Hear that, boys? We protect Tazuna  _and_  Sakura at all costs from here on out."

"Yes sir!" Naruto said with a grin and forming a salute while Sasuke nodded at his side.

Sakura was used to this kind of treatment. She fully understood the rationale for keeping the medical ninja safe. But it meant she wouldn't have a chance to enhance her skills in battle like she was hoping, making this entire mission completely useless after all.

And she couldn't help feeling unnerved by how this also meant she would be putting her life in a young Naruto's hands.

***

The next series of events unfolded exactly how Sakura remembered them.

Upon their arrival to the Land of Waves, they encountered Zabuza the Demon. This time, Sakura decided to keep her mouth shut this time about her knowledge of the enemy's battle tactics. She didn't want to rouse any further suspicions from her sensei.

Team Seven engaged in battle. Recognizing this as an enemy to be reckoned with, Kakashi revealed his Sharingan eye and used it to perform his signature mimicking of the enemy's ninjutsu. Zabuza was certainly a unique opponent. For one thing, he had a physique that was less common among ninjas. He was an enormous, brawny man with taunt, rippling muscles. And somehow, despite his stature, he was extremely fast. Second of all, Zabuza was known as one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and wielded a heavy cleaver that was just as long as he was tall.

And finally, there was something about him that was inexplicably menacing. Perhaps it came from the mean look in his dark, beady eyes, or that demonic, bone-chilling chakra signature of his. Either way, Team Seven was in for a battle far out of their leagues.

Sakura was itching to join the fight, but she obeyed her sensei and stayed at the bridge builder's side. And she knew that Zabuza could kill her in an instant if she tried anything rash. He was a hired assassin, after all. So Sakura resisted her offensive urges and watched Kakashi get trapped in Zabuza's water prison. She watched the Uchiha prodigy lose his composure and get painfully slammed into the ground. She watched Naruto bravely retrieve his Leaf Village head protector from under the demon's foot, although it took him several near-fatal blows to get it.

Sakura's hands, defensively outstretched and gripping her kunai, were shaking now. She reminded herself that the boys got themselves out of this once and they could do it again.

And just when she considered disobeying her sensei and intervening, her teammates prepared a brilliant counterattack. Naruto distracted Zabuza with his shadow clones while Sasuke fired a demon wind shuriken, which was actually a substitution for the real Naruto, straight at their opponent. Naruto ditched his shuriken disguise when he was directly behind Zabuza and attacked, forcing his opponent to release Kakashi from the water prison. Then Kakashi and Zabuza engaged in a full-fledged ninjutsu battle beyond any of their capabilities, so Naruto and Sasuke returned to Sakura, who placed her hands on their backs and healed their minor injuries.

And then, out of nowhere, two humongous needles pierced Zabuza in the throat.

He collapsed to the ground and went still.

Shocked, Team Seven gathered around him and checked his vital signs. Kakashi pronounced him dead.

But Sakura knew otherwise.

A person adorned in dark green robes and a sinister, white mask appeared in an overlooking tree, introducing himself as Haku, the ninja hunter. He thanked them for forcing Zabuza into a weakened state, but explained that he wanted to put the notorious villain out of his misery himself.

"You're lying."

All heads turned to Sakura.

"Sakura, he killed Zabuza," Kakashi said.

Sakura knew she should bite her tongue. But she couldn't.

The mere sight of the masked boy brought her blood to a boil. She didn't care if he was just a tool playing out Zabuza's bidding. The last time Sakura saw this boy, he had gruesomely defeated Sasuke right before her eyes, leaving him paralyzed in a death-like state. And yes, in the end he  _didn't_ actually kill Sasuke. In fact, Haku ended up  _choosing_  to spare Sasuke's life by a thread. But the whole encounter was Sakura's first experience with real grief and emotional trauma. Because of Haku, she would forever be haunted by the image of the boy she loved dead in her arms on the bridge in the Land of Waves.

And in this moment, Sakura's heart had far greater sway over her actions than her reasoning.

"Zabuza isn't dead. And this boy is his puppet," she said in a far more commanding tone than she thought she was capable of.

Haku sprang down from the tree to where Zabuza's body lay. "I killed him," Haku replied coldly while securing one of the demon's arms around his shoulders and lifting the enormous man up.

"Then what are you doing picking him up?" Naruto yelled and waving an accusatory finger at the masked boy. Sakura felt a rush of gratitude towards her blonde teammate. As unbelievable as her claim might seem to everyone, at least Naruto had her back.

"I'm disposing of the body," Haku said simply. "Ninja hunters cover up their tracks." He stood up, made a hand seal with his free hand, and, moments later, they were all engulfed in a cloud of thick, cold mist.

Team Seven surrounded Tazuna and drew their weapons. Was Haku planning to strike them? They whipped their heads around, searching for any signs of Haku's attack.

But there were none.

"You are an extraordinarily perceptive girl. We will not forget you," Haku's voice rang through the vicinity.

And when the mist dissipated, he and Zabuza were gone.

The others rounded on Sakura. "How –," Kakashi began, but Sakura interrupted with her prepared answer.

"I encountered it in my training as a medical ninja," she half-lied hurriedly. "The masked boy put Zabuza in a death-like state without piercing any of his vital organs. After using that little trick, it seemed the boy was planning to take Zabuza away to safety while pretending to be our alley."

But Kakashi didn't seem to hear her. He was swaying on the spot. "Sensei?" Naruto asked, but the word barely escaped his lips when Kakashi collapsed onto the ground.

Sakura rushed over to him and didn't even need to look at his vital signs to know what was going on. "Chakra depletion. He probably used his Sharingan too much," she explained to the others. It wasn't unusual for Kakashi to get like this. Nonetheless, it was crucial that he rested in a safe place immediately. With the strongest member of their team out of commission, Team Seven would be at a huge disadvantage if another fight ensued.

"We'll take him to my place," said Tazuna. "We are nearly there anyways. Let us hope no more enemies lie in wait for us."

"All right, let's move," Sasuke said while hoisting Kakashi up onto his back. "The sooner we get there the better."

***

Once they were in Tazuna's house, the trio of Genin lay their sensei down on a bed. Sakura injected him with a mild pain killer that would both relieve him from some discomfort when he woke up and help him sleep soundly.

They were introduced to the bridge builder's mild-natured daughter, Tsunami, and her moody son, Inari. And as Naruto did with most new people he met as a young teenager, he immediately got on Inari's bad side. They launched into a heated debate over the value of ninjas and whether heroes existed which ended in Inari storming away to his bedroom.

After lunch, Kakashi woke up. He claimed that he needed nearly a week before he would be strong enough to face Zabuza again. So in the meantime, Team Seven would have to lay low.

After helping Tsunami with the dishes, Naruto went snooping through the house (looking for Inari, no doubt), and Sasuke claimed he was going to search for information on Zabuza. Sakura decided to use this opportunity to slip out into the village before the boys noticed her absence.

The Land of Waves was riddled with poverty. But Sakura remembered it having a medical shop that sold a unique array of items that might be worth a visit.

She navigated through the dirty, crowded streets while keeping her head low. It seemed that just about everyone was wearing brown, tattered rags, and Sakura noticed that the shelves in the shops selling food were nearly bare. She felt a stab of sadness in her heart at the dreadful living conditions, but reminded herself there wasn't anything that she could do about them – not right now – and so she kept walking.

After fending off three creepy men from trying to cop a feel ( _those sick perverts_ ), Sakura stumbled on a shop selling home-brewed medications. She inspected the vials and containers lining the walls, but the ingredients weren't listed anywhere on the packages. Erring on the side of caution, she placed the medications back onto their respective shelves and turned to leave.

Then she felt the presence.

The exact presence she detected in the alley in Konoha. From somewhere within the medicine shop. An icy, stinging sensation raced up her spine, sending chills across her exposed skin. Sakura instinctively reached to her weapon pouch for a knife while nervously glancing over her shoulder. There were only three people in the store besides herself, two of them being a mother and her child, and the other, an old lady standing behind the cash register.

_This chakra signature isn't coming from them._

She whirled around and, as abruptly as it appeared, the presence vanished.

Sakura scanned the store with wide eyes.  _Was that… my imagination?_  She accidentally caught eyes with the lady behind the register and quickly turned away and left the shop. Once she was back in the bustling streets, Sakura racked her brain for any memories of the chakra presence in her previous life. She also wondered why it would be in the Land of Waves when she sensed it in Konoha so recently. Was someone following her? Was it possible that someone from the future also travelled back in time and was onto her? Was this a coincidence? And what if the presence wasn't there at all and this was just a product of Sakura's exhaustion from the long journey?

_Bump._

Lost in her thoughts, Sakura collided with someone. She jumped back and was just reaching in her weapon holster for a knife when she noticed the small child scrambling to his feet before her.

"Oh!" Sakura exclaimed and extending a hand to help the child up. He flinched at her offer to help. The child was missing his front teeth and appeared to be wearing a potato sack as a tunic. But what grabbed Sakura's attention most were his black eye and the scars running up his arms.

Her chest tightened and she crouched down so that she was on eye-level with the child. He couldn't be any older than five. "I'm sorry," Sakura said as sincerely as she could. But the kid remained frozen to the spot, his alarmed expression unchanging. "Can I have a look at your arms? I'm a doctor and I can make them feel better." He didn't budge, so Sakura hesitantly inched her hand towards him, beckoning for him to take it. "It's okay," she said. "I want to help you."

Ever so slowly, the boy extended his arm and placed his palm on Sakura's hand. His wide eyes were trained on hers the entire time and Sakura's heart gave a small leap at his trusting gesture. She quickly pumped medical chakra to her hands which wrapped around their palms. The boy's eyes widened, mesmerized by the green glow creeping up his arm. He let out a tiny yelp when Sakura's chakra reached one of the first deep cuts. Sakura patted his other shoulder with her free hand to calm him.

She closed her eyes and concentrated, redirecting the chakra from cut to cut, healing each one, and even removing old, scabbed-over wounds. When she was finished, Sakura opened her eyes to the boy's enormous, toothless grin.

He emitted a straggled cry of joy, pointing to his now-healed arm excitedly while bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Feel better?" she asked with a smile. "Now for the other arm." He complied and she healed it. And it was only when she was working on his black eye did Sakura notice the crowd of tiny figures gathering around them.

Children of varying heights and ages (but of relatively similar body types: the malnourished type) were drawing nearer and watching intently. Sakura's heart started to pound when she saw the sea of bruises and scars, but what got to her most was the silent plea in their wide, hungry eyes.

And the urge to help she felt in response to their stares was impossible to ignore.

"Gather round," Sakura heard herself say. "I am going to heal all of you!"

And for the second time that day, it was not her brain but her heart calling her to action.

***

Two hours later, Naruto and Sasuke found Sakura in the village. By then she had depleted a significant amount of her chakra and was fighting against the onslaught of warning signs that her body couldn't take much more of this. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto called through the ever-growing crowd of children. There were at least forty of them now. "Where have you been? We've been searching for you!"

"I've been right here!" Sakura answered without averting her eyes from her current patient. She was starting to feel dizzy and her dry throat clenched when she spoke. As she finished sealing the stub of a missing finger on an older girl, she noticed that her hands were trembling. But when she looked around at all of the small, expectant faces, she knew giving up wasn't an option.

"Sakura, you need to stop," Sasuke said seriously. He and Naruto had made their ways through the crowd. He crouched down beside her in attempt to catch her unwavering attention. "You're going to end up like Kakashi."

"Sakura-chan, this is amazing. It really is. but you need to go back and rest or  _you'll_ need the help," Naruto chimed in.

"But –"

"No," Sasuke said firmly while grabbing Sakura's arm and hoisting her to her feet. That was when it dawned on her just how exhausted she was. She was on the verge of collapsing. "That's enough," he said, his tone softening. "Don't forget your mission."

Sakura's heart stopped. "My mission?" she repeated and feeling her hands grow clammy.

He was right. Her mission. She needed to build her strength. Kill Orochimaru. Save Sasuke. Investigate the strange presence. But instead she was wasting time and chakra on impoverished children who she had no hope of saving on her own.

_What am I doing?_

Frustrated, Sakura turned away from her teammates and started massaging her temples. But her legs were still wobbling, and Sasuke was far too observant not to notice, so he placed a steadying hand between her shoulder blades.

"Yes," he said and raising an eyebrow at her unusual response to his comment. "How are you going to protect the bridge builder if you don't have any chakra left?"

Oh.  _That_  mission.

"R-right," she said quietly while attempting to steady herself. Sasuke waited patiently as she regained some control over her legs before retreating his hand. "Thanks," she muttered before scanning the crowd for Naruto. As it turned out, all that time he was teaching several of the kids a secret handshake.

Sakura's gaze lingered on the sea of starving, pleading eyes, all watching her intently.

The pain in her chest returned.  _I can't leave them._ That would contradict her very nature as a healer. And Sakura knew there was only one way to fight this pain.

_Time travel mission be damned._

"I'll be back tomorrow," she announced before she could stop herself. "I just need some rest. And when I'm strong again I'll help as many more of you as I can."

The crowd of children cheered. A few of the smaller kids near the front even dropped to their knees in gratitude and others offered deep bows. Naruto and Sasuke gaped on, clearly shocked by their teammate's abrupt claim.

The boys eventually managed to drag Sakura away from the village. "We're going to be late for dinner! Hurry up, you guys!" Naruto, who was leading the way, called over his shoulder. "You could really use the energy, Sakura-chan."

She nodded and stared at her dragging feet.

"Why did you leave without telling anyone?" Sasuke asked.

Sakura shrugged. "I wanted to run some errands. I knew you guys would have tried stopping me so I figured I'd just go myself." Sasuke frowned.

Naruto whirled around to face her. "That's not smart of you, Sakura-chan. I mean, you're tough and everything, but you're a girl. A small,  _cute_  girl," he added with a cheeky smile and a wink. "And… there are a lot of perverted creeps in that village. Even as a ninja, you don't want to get caught alone with one of those creeps." He visibly shuddered.

Sasuke's jaw was clenched. "It's part of our mission to protect you. And we can't do that if you run off."

Sakura nodded but kept her mouth firmly shut. Sasuke was confirming her sneaking suspicion that he wouldn't condone her informal medical practice in the village.

"And I guess Naruto and I will alternate staying with you while you help those kids tomorrow."

Her stomach did a summersault.  _He's… supporting me?_ "Really?" Sakura asked and raising her eyebrows. "You're not going to try to stop me from going back?"

Sasuke shrugged and gazed at the back of Naruto's bobbing, blonde head. "No, I won't," he said and averting his stare to the ground. Strands of his black hair fell forward at the motion and obscured his eyes from view. "It's good, what you're doing. I want to help," he added quietly.

Not entirely sure what to make of his comment, Sakura felt her face warm. She had been certain that Sasuke would disapprove of her proposal. But maybe he saw some good in it after all.

After a moment, Sasuke glanced in her direction again. "And this will be good practice for your medical ninjutsu."

"You're right," she said. "I wasn't really thinking of that."

"Yeah  _and_  this will be good practice for my bodyguard skills," Naruto said and finally turning back to face his teammates. He curled his biceps and shot Sakura a smug grin. "Just tell everyone I'm your boyfriend, Sakura-chan. Those creeps won't even  _think_  of going anywhere near you."


	10. Love Triangle

 

" _She's back!"_

_"Have you seen her yet?"_

" _Do you think she'll stay?"_

_"Things won't be the same for me after this."_

" _She's a beacon of hope to our village."_

" _The Pink Medic!"_

***

Sakura's informal medical practice was gaining a reputation in the Land of Waves. Early the next morning, she returned to the spot where she healed the first child only to discover that an enormous crowd of children were eagerly waiting for her. As word of her practice spread, she was exposed to increasingly grave and complex injuries. By late morning, Sakura was tending to wounded villagers of all ages and all walks of life.

Her healing station became increasingly sophisticated as the hours stretched on. With the help of kind volunteers from the village, before lunchtime, Sakura found herself working under a huge tent sheltering a table, several chairs, and five makeshift beds for her patients. Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi organized a place for the villagers to form a line by pegging ropes to wooden posts. Sakura's patients willingly abided to the arrangement, allowing those with more critical wounds to skip to the front of the line.

"This is quite something, Sakura," said Kakashi from where he sat across from the patients' beds. He was on bodyguard duty and sent the boys off to watch over the bridge builder for the morning. He was still recovering from severe chakra depletion and the injuries Zabuza inflicted. He spent his entire shift in a chair beside his crutches propped up on the wall of the tent. He seemed content with the opportunity to read a certain little orange book but he asked Sakura the occasional question.

"I know," Sakura said hurriedly as she beckoned for a young boy at the front of the line to get onto an empty bed. "But there are just so  _many_ of them. And I don't have any medications or even  _bandages_ to work with."

"You seem very well-versed though," Kakashi said while closing his book and folding his arms across his chest. "You really have been doing this for a long time, haven't you?"

"Yes," Sakura answered quickly and turning her attention to a woman with a badly broken leg. Kakashi watched her intently for several minutes before returning to his book.

After her lunch break, Sakura noticed that her reserve of chakra had indeed grown since her time travel mission began and that her manipulation of medical chakra was refining. Despite her exhaustion, she knew that if she took periodic breaks, she could heal a significant number of villagers. Maybe Sasuke was right after all. Maybe this practice wasn't a complete waste of time.

But Sakura couldn't help feeling weary. There was no way she could heal everyone alone. And she suspected that her work would anger Gatō, the village tyrant. Would he send a ninja assassin after  _her?_ She shuddered at the thought. And who knew what other enemies her goodwill would attract. Her  _Pink Medic_  reputation made her rather identifiable too.

_Maybe I should dye it or invest in a wig after all…_

"Sakura-chan!"

Halting her train of thought, she turned to the source of the voice. Naruto, who was now on guard duty, was leading a woman wearing a tattered, brown cloak to the front of the line. "What's wrong?" Sakura asked the woman, expecting her to present a critical injury.

"She is here to assist you," Naruto said with an enormous grin and a double thumbs-up. "She's a civilian nurse and offered to help you run this thing!"

"I don't have very advanced skills but I know how to treat basic injuries," the woman said and bowing deeply. "It's the very least I can do."

Taken by surprise, Sakura blinked several times then nodded. "Thank you. I… uh, could you look after the first two beds?"

***

By the time Sasuke's bodyguard shift started, Sakura was overseeing not only three civilian medics but also two ninjas with basic skills in medical ninjutsu, each manning her own bed. She felt right at home in her authoritative role because this was the type of position that she held at Konoha's hospital in her former life. Sakura offered advice and took care of particularly complicated wounds on her own but, overall, the volunteer assistants allowed Sakura to conserve some of her chakra while treating five times as many patients.

Sasuke hardly spoke a word to Sakura for the duration of his shift. He stood at the entrance of the tent, directed patients to medical stations, and helped small children and those with mobility impairments onto the beds. When Sakura stopped for a short break, she noticed that the youngest medical ninja blushed deeply each time Sasuke approached her station. She placed a hand on his arm after he lifted a child onto the bed she was tending to. "Thanks Sasuke-kun," she said sweetly while shooting him a wide smile and tucking a strand of her flaming red hair behind her ear.

He nodded dismissively and then noticed Sakura resting on a chair at the back of the tent. Oblivious to both girls' irritated expressions, he approached her with his hands tucked in his pockets. "Calling it quits?" he asked.

"No. I'm just taking a break," she said a little defensively while stretching out her arms. It was only now that she was finally sitting down that she realized just how much her body was aching.

"All right," he answered and taking the seat beside her. All the beds were currently occupied so his patient traffic control services weren't needed up at the front. They gazed out at the villagers waiting patiently in line and the volunteer medics hard at work. Sakura's healing tent was transforming into a rather efficient system. And despite how the tent was filled with injured and sick individuals, the villagers' spirits were high and Sakura was presented with countless thank yous and homemade gifts.

"I can't believe you did this," Sasuke mumbled after a few minutes. He was leaning back with his arms folded.

"Neither can I," Sakura answered honestly while admiring a hand-crafted piece of jewelry a woman had given her after Sakura extracted poison from her husband's leg. "I guess they don't have a functional or affordable hospital around here. Not that the villagers here can afford much at all." And the more she thought about the dreadful living conditions in the Land of Waves, the more she loathed that slimy, selfish billionaire, Gatō. Worst of all, Gatō was determined to destroy Tazuna's bridge and trap the villagers here.

"I've been thinking, Sakura," Sasuke said slowly while staring out at the ever-shrinking line of wounded villagers. Sakura turned to him and raised her eyebrows. "And I want to know about your revenge."

"My... oh." Sakura's heartrate quickened and she felt perspiration that had nothing to do with her exhaustion dampen her forehead. He didn't seem to notice.

"Yeah. I don't know a thing about your past." Sakura's mouth grew very dry. She didn't have a prepared answer for this. And she wasn't about to wing it and risk exposing too much about her mission. He shot her a glance and she quickly averted her gaze. She couldn't afford for him to see through her like he usually did. Not right now. But Sakura could feel his expectant eyes trained on her as she racked her brain for any excuse to get away…

"Sakura! I need your help!"

Sakura spun in the direction of the new voice, instantly relieved. Thank the  _gods_. The medical ninja with the obvious thing for Sasuke was waving her over. Sakura sprang to her feet and motioned to join the woman. "Not now," she muttered to Sasuke as she made a bee-line for the redhead's station. She didn't care if the medic was just trying to catch his attention or, more likely, redirect Sasuke's attention away from  _her_.

Sakura needed to buy time before he approached her again.

***

At dinner, Kakashi claimed (to Sakura more than anyone) that Team Seven would be training as a group the following afternoon. "I have a special exercise in mind," he said.

By then, to Sakura's relief, she discovered that her tent was self-sustaining enough to proceed without her presence for a few hours. Donations of medical supplies had been offered to Sakura's team, and they now had a variety of medications, bandages, and reference books to use, allowing them to treat a wider range of conditions. She bid the other medics farewell before she and Naruto, who had been on guard duty, left for the forest to meet Sasuke and Kakashi and start training.

Upon their arrival, Kakashi announced that he would show them how to climb enormous trees in an unusual fashion. Then, with his crutches in hand, he started walking up a tree with his body parallel to the ground. Naruto and Sasuke stared at him in amazement while he explained how just the right amount of chakra had to be exerted from the foot for it to stick to the tree trunk. Sasuke shot Sakura a sideways glance during Kakashi's explanation and Sakura knew that he was thinking of the exercise she taught him where they stuck shuriken to their hands. Sakura nodded back. This tree climbing would involve the exact same kind of chakra control.

When put to the test, Sakura raced up to the top of the tree as she had in her former life. She always excelled in chakra control. Her teammates, on the other hand, struggled. After twenty minutes, Naruto managed to climb about ten feet up and Sasuke, twenty feet. He was excelling faster than he did in Sakura's previous life thanks to his private training with Sakura, but he still had a lot of work to do. Kakashi admitted he was unsurprised by Sakura's excellence at climbing the trees since she was a practicing medical ninja. "Medical ninjutsu users are the chakra control elitists of the ninja world," he explained to the boys. "Sakura is even way out of my league, so I suggest you consult her if you need any help."

Naruto immediately claimed Sakura as his personal coach. Before she even looked at him she knew that Naruto's main issue was his lack of concentration. She stared up at the markings Naruto had made in the tree to track his progress. He had hardly improved in the hour they had been training as indicated by how all of the marks in his tree were clumped around the bottom. Naruto was glaring at Sasuke's tree, which bore markings that reached twice as high as his. "This sucks," he mumbled. "He's doing so much better than me."

"You can beat him," Sakura encouraged.

"Not at this rate," he said with a frustrated sigh.

Sakura frowned. She needed to fix his uncharacteristic gloominess or he wouldn't improve at all. "Tell you what," she said. "Whoever gets to the top of the tree first gets to take me on a date."

As anticipated, Naruto eyes instantly lit up. Nothing fired the guy up more than a competition. "A date, hm?" he repeated thoughtfully while turning to Sasuke and squaring his shoulders to size him up. "Yeah. Yeah, I like the sound of that. Prepare to get your butt kicked, bastard!" And then Naruto was gunning it up the tree with a new rush of adrenaline. Sasuke rolled his eyes at his teammates and continued training in silence.

Neither of the boys made it up the tree before supper. After they ate, the two of them left for the forest and practiced late into the night until they were both almost entirely out of chakra. Meanwhile, Sakura stayed with Tazuna's family and slept soundly to replenish enough of her chakra to help out at the medical tent the following day

The next night, after Sakura spent the day alternating between working at her tent and guarding Tazuna at the bridge, Sasuke and Naruto finally made it to the top of the trees. They emerged into Tazuna's house while everyone else was sitting around the dinner table. Sasuke hoisted Naruto in, who was struggling to walk. "W-we did it!" Naruto exclaimed breathlessly. "We both made it to the top!"

"Excellent," Kakashi said with a nod of approval. "And I am nearly healed. We are just about ready to provide our bodyguard services as a team."

"Yeah! Believe it!" Naruto said and reaching up to punch the air but forgetting his arm was hooked around Sasuke's shoulders. As a result, he hit Sasuke square in the jaw and sent them both toppling to the floor.

After a long, nasty exchange (and Tazuna going on a spiel about how having Kakashi's team around "was keeping him youthful"), the boys finally reached the table and wolfed down their food like the tired, starving teenagers they were. Naruto only paused to speak to Sakura. "Oh, and I'm terribly sorry Sakura-chan, but Sasuke made it to the top of the tree about ten seconds before I did. So I guess we won't go on a date after all."

Sasuke swallowed his mouthful with a huge gulp and slammed down his chopsticks. "More like ten hours, dumbass," he snapped. "I spent most of the day stopping you from falling out of  _your_  tree."

"Well  _you_ were just showing off," Naruto snarled through a mouthful of food. "I  _pretended_ to fall so I could test you!" The arguing continued, but Sakura's mind started to wander. Had Sasuke really learned to climb the tree that much earlier than Naruto? Of what she remembered, the two of them had been on par in her previous life. If so, he was gaining new skills at a miraculously fast pace. Did this mean he would learn all the skills he could from Konoha earlier than his former self did? Would he grow bored faster and seek out other sources of power? Would he leave the village earlier?

Was she just speeding up the downward spiral that his former self was caught in?

"Sakura-chan? Are you okay?"

She blinked and noticed all heads at the table turn in her direction. "You look pale," said Kakashi, who had been talking to the bridge builder and his family. "I think you – all of you – should get some rest tonight. I forbid training after hours."

"Right," Sakura said while shaking her head and blinking rapidly to pull herself back to the present.

***

After supper, Sakura offered to clean the dishes so she could think without any distractions. She needed to reassess her mission and everything she was doing with her new life. If she was going to save Sasuke herself, she needed to get strong enough to stop him from leaving. But if he was growing at the same rate she was, it didn't matter how strong she got. He would always overpower her.

Before her mind got any further in its mulling, Sasuke appeared beside Sakura and reached for a dirty plate. "What are you doing?" she asked. Her body tensed up at the sight of him.

"Helping," he answered simply while avoiding eye-contact and passing her the freshly-scrubbed plate to rinse.

Sakura pursed her lips. She very well knew that washing dishes wasn't why Sasuke was here.

_He's going to ask about my revenge again._

And Sakura hadn't gotten around to formulating an answer yet. She opened her mouth to say she had to leave, but he beat her to it. "I made it to the top of the tree first," he said without sparing her a glance.

"Oh yeah?" she questioned, feeling a mixture of relief and unease at his unexpected choice of conversation. "That's good." She started rinsing the plate. Sakura tucked a loose strand of her shoulder-length hair behind her ear and peered through the window above the sink at the sun setting on the horizon. She took a moment to relish in the beauty of the pink and orange lights dancing across the water's surface and spotted the silhouettes of sailboats in the distance. It really was a beautiful village. There was a lot to cherish about this place despite the rampart poverty and political corruption…

"We're not going on a date."

Sakura dropped the dish she was holding onto the counter.

"W-what?" she stammered while quickly retrieving the plate to inspect it for cracks. Thankfully there weren't any but now she was thoroughly embarrassed.

A  _date_? That was the last thing she expected Sasuke to bring up. Feeling flustered, she hastily said, "I wasn't expecting one" and turned back to the task at hand with increased focus.

"Right," he answered before he also returned to the dishes. Now all Sakura could hear was the clanging and scrubbing of dishes and her heartbeat pounding in her ears. She couldn't stop her mind from racing. Why on earth was he talking to her about such trivial things right now? Did he really think Sakura was expecting a date or was this just his awkward way of initiating small talk?  _Definitely the latter,_  she told herself firmly and willing her heart to slow down its beating. She determinedly kept her eyes trained on the mug she was aggressively scrubbing.

She was so determined, in fact, that she didn't notice Sasuke flash-step directly beside her until his lips were hovering beside her ear. His whisper was so soft that it was barely audible. "Let's train tonight," he said, and goosebumps raised where Sasuke's breath tickled the side of her neck.

Sakura promptly dropped the mug onto the counter with a crash. It shattered.

" _What_ are you-," she started but was cut short when Sasuke shoved a hand over her mouth.

"Shut up," he hissed. "Kakashi said no sneaking out so I don't want him hearing." Sakura opened her mouth to speak but couldn't with her teammate's palm in the way so she wrenched his hand off and finally stole a proper look at his face.

And regretted it immediately.

The light of the sunset was dancing across Sasuke's dark eyes which were so close that she could make out the rims around his pupils. Her own dilated pupils flitted across his face and just took everything in. The unkempt bangs, the arch of his eyebrows, his straight nose, the curve of his jaw…

It really wasn't fair how smitten she was. And to make it all worse, Sasuke's lips curled into a smirk and Sakura  _hoped_ that it was because he interpreted her silence as compliance to train with him and not because he realized the utterly stupefying effect he had on her. "Uh…," she said and hoping to somehow regain her composure but completely failing.

That was when Naruto burst into the kitchen.

"Guys! It's bedtime now! It's – hey! What's going on in here?!"

Sakura's head snapped around and she acknowledged that this interaction probably appeared as strange as it was. Sasuke and Sakura were facing each other in a pile of broken mug pieces with Sakura gripping onto Sasuke's hand – the hand she had just forced away from her mouth.

She released it immediately and turned on her heel. "Perfect!" she snapped. "I'm going to bed."

"So am I," she heard Sasuke say as she stalked off. "But Sakura made a mess and left so I've got to clean this first."

***

Although she technically hadn't agreed to train with Sasuke, Sakura settled into her sleeping bag fully clad in her backup training attire. And, surely enough, after lying down for thirty minutes, and just when she started to doze off, Sasuke roused her awake. He grabbed her hand before Sakura could instinctively reach for her knife and whispered, "Let's go."

The two of them snuck out, treading lightly on the squeaky floorboards of Tazuna's house and back porch, and into the forest. Instead of her signature training clothes, Sakura was wearing a pair of grey cropped pants with her weapon holster strapped over the right thigh and a red, sleeveless top. Sasuke hadn't bothered putting on training gear at all, and she was pretty sure the black shirt and grey sweats he was wearing were what he normally slept in. Neither of them bothered to grab their forehead protectors on the way out either.

At a slow jog, Sasuke led her through the trees in silence. The air was cool but the starry sky was clear of clouds which brightened their surroundings considerably.

Soon they arrived at the clearing lined with tall trees where Team Seven previously trained together. "I'm not very good at tree climbing yet," Sasuke admitted, breaking the silence, and stopping in his tracks. "I only made it to the top a few times."

"Well, show me what you can do," Sakura said while nodding in his direction and folding her arms across her chest.

"All right," he said. Sasuke closed his eyes and brought his hands together in a basic hand seal as he concentrated chakra to the soles of his feet. He proceeded to climb halfway up a tree before exerting too much chakra, which blasted a small hole into the trunk, and reeling backwards off of the tree. "Damn it," he growled as he hopped from tree trunk to tree trunk to control his descent. "I've done this before. Maybe I'm not concentrating enough." He gazed up at the branches and ran a hand through his messy, black hair.

Sakura considered his comment. "Maybe... maybe you're concentrating too  _much_ ," she mused. Sasuke raised his eyebrows, prompting her to elaborate. "You do have skills in chakra control. I've seen them. But I think you're pumping too much chakra to your feet because you're too focused on the task."

He shrugged. "But if I don't focus enough I'll have the opposite problem, right?"

Sasuke had a point. What he needed was something to preoccupy him. Something that would shift his attention without completely distracting him from tree climbing…

Sakura glanced around the clearing. They didn't have many supplies to work with so she would have to get creative. "How about...," she said and noticing a large pinecone on the ground beside a tree, "we play catch?" She smiled and tossed the pinecone to him.

" _Catch_?" he repeated and shooting her a skeptical look. "I don't have time for games."

"Hold up, I have an idea," she said and raising a finger to pause him. "Throw that pinecone as high as you can."

After one more disbelieving glance, Sasuke obliged and sent the pinecone hurling up into the darkness. As quick as a flash, Sakura raced up the tree beside them with her eyes trained on the little brown spec, which was beginning its descent back towards the ground. Anticipating the point of interception, she sprang from the tree to catch it and landed on a tree on the opposite side of the clearing. She clung to the trunk with her feet and free hand.

Then Sakura glanced down to where Sasuke stood about thirty feet below her. He was watching her with a raised eyebrow. "Fine. Maybe this isn't such a bad idea," he said.

"Your turn!" she called playfully and tossing the pinecone high into the clearing. Sasuke copied Sakura's former actions and managed to catch it. He landed on the tree beside her, clinging to it with only his feet. It took Sasuke a moment to steady himself, but once he caught his breath and gained his bearings, Sakura glimpsed his ghost of a smile before he threw the pinecone into the air again.

She was right, it seemed. His chakra control was flawless when it wasn't the only thing on his mind.

A long game of catch ensued. The two teammates bounded through the branches, flew through the clearing, and clung to the tree trunks with various parts of their bodies. They made it up very high in the trees, and Sasuke didn't even seem to notice until Sakura pointed it out.

This was by far the most enjoyable training exercise they'd done yet. In fact, this was the most fun Sakura had had in as long as she could remember. She hardly noticed the cool air against her bare arms now that her muscles were engaged and her heart was racing. She felt like a kid again. Like her former young teenage self who didn't have the weight of her time travel mission to bear.

The game of catch came to an end when Sasuke accidentally hit her with the pinecone. He froze and eyed the red mark on her leg. "I didn't mean-," he started while leaping over to her tree, but she interrupted by throwing the pinecone right back at him. He managed to catch it just before it hit him square in the chest. Sakura laughed at his surprised reaction and jumped out of sight in preparation for the return fire.

And that was how the game of catch became a pinecone fight.

They spent the next thirty minutes firing the small wooden ball at each other while climbing higher and higher through the trees. Sakura absently wondered if Sasuke was enjoying himself. She had a feeling he was, especially when she caught him smirking at some of her more ridiculous acrobatic attempts to dodge the pinecone (several of which nearly sent her plummeting to the ground), and how his attacks became progressively more ruthless as the game went on. Sasuke didn't come off as the kind of person to enjoy silly, mindless games, but perhaps he just never really had an opportunity to.

That was when Sakura spotted her teammate slip behind a trunk near the very top of a tree and she decided to launch a surprise attack. She crept up the tree beside it and then sprang down onto the branch and fired the pinecone in the direction of his chakra signature.

But he wasn't there.

The pinecone struck the trunk, bounced onto the branch, and started its seventy-foot descent to the ground. She made no motion to catch it. Sakura was baffled. She had been certain Sasuke was here.

She whirled around but now even his chakra was undetectable. "Sasuke?" she called out quietly but she received no answer.

Sakura pressed herself to the tree trunk and listened intently for any sign of rustling branches or footsteps. Her ears were only met with sounds of the night. Folding her arms across her chest, Sakura whirled around and shouted, "No fair! Stop hiding your chakra like that!" But only the soft chirping of crickets and the distant hoot of an owl answered her. Frowning, Sakura scanned her surroundings for any trace of her teammate's head poking out from the branches, but to no avail.

_How did he totally disappear like that? Did something happen?_

Anxiety began to well up inside of her as thoughts of a certain ninja hunter who lurked around this village crept into her mind. And then a thought spiral began as the image of another villain, this one snakelike and after Sasuke, found its way into her mind's eye…

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried and failing to hide the desperation in her voice.

A pinecone hit the back of her head.

She spun around to find Sasuke standing on a nearby branch with his arms folded and a smug look plastered on his face. "You underestimate my ability to conceal chakra," he said while shaking his head. "Calm down."

Sakura turned away defiantly and was thankful that it was too dark for him to see her flushed face. "You cheated," she said. "It's just a game. You didn't have to hide your chakra like that."

Sasuke hopped over to her branch. "You're just saying that because you're losing," he gloated with a shrug. And before Sakura could really comprehend his comment or open her mouth to retort, a loud  _SNAP_ resounded below them and her stomach summersaulted because she was falling.

Evidently, the branch couldn't support both of their weights.

Sakura's body froze in shock as it plummeted towards the ground, scraping against branches and snapping small twigs. She didn't pay attention to the pain though because she needed to get a hold of herself and grip onto something.

That was when Sakura was thrust backwards against the tree truck with a force that nearly knocked the breath out of her.

It took a few seconds for Sakura to process that Sasuke had stopped her fall by sandwiching her against the tree. His chakra-loaded hands and feet were pressed to the trunk as anchors and were even secure enough for Sakura to stand on his feet. "Thanks!" she gasped into his ear between heavy breaths. "Good thing you can stick to trees now," she added with a breathless chuckle. And before she could stop it, the chuckle became giggle. And the giggle escalated into a full-blown laughing fit.

This really was an unusual predicament to be in. Last month, Sasuke Uchiha was a wanted rogue ninja plotting the mass destruction of the Hidden Leaf Village. Before this month, in fact, the only times Sakura had seen her beloved ex-teammate in the past three years, he had been aiming a Chidori-riddled sword at her heart or had a hand around her throat.

And now here they were, united again, pressed together against a tree trunk seventy feet in the air in the heat of a vicious pinecone fight.

Water pooled in Sakura's tear ducts.

Sasuke drew his head back to get a proper view of her face. "What?" he asked. His tone was serious, but the way his lips were pursed told her that he was probably biting back a smile or maybe even a laugh of his own.

But Sakura was so long gone that she couldn't even choke out a response. She lifted a hand to wipe her eyes and Sasuke patiently watched her from his position a few inches away until she finally managed to compose herself.

"Done yet?" he asked and cocking an eyebrow.

Sakura exhaled deeply from her nose. "I-I think so," she said and peering up at him through teary eyes. But that was when it dawned on her just how close he was.

Instinctively, Sakura turned her face away and pressed her head harder into the tree trunk, her breath catching and her heart thumping. Sasuke seemed to take this as his cue to help his teammate down onto the nearest branch.

"Well, this one seems… stronger," he noted as he sat himself down onto the branch. He beckoned for Sakura to join him. They sat there in silence for a moment, shoulder-and-shoulder, and gazed out at the forest, the village in the distance, and the starry night sky. Crickets softly chirped and leaves rustled in the soft breeze. It was both relaxing and exhilarating to be so high up in the air and have such a stunning view of the Land of Waves.

It took a while for Sakura to notice that her palms were aching from cuts caused by the tree trunks in their game and scrapes from the branches during their fall. And if  _her_  hands were sore, so were Sasuke's. Without a moment's hesitation, Sakura reached for his hand, which was resting on his thigh nearest to her, and directed a steady stream of medical chakra into it. Sasuke seemed startled by her touch, but he didn't resist her kind gesture. He flipped his hand over to give her access to his palm, which had sustained the most damage from the rough tree bark.

Sasuke watched patiently while she finished up with his first hand before offering her the other. Only then did he speak. "Sakura," he said quietly and staring down at the green glow encompassing their hands. "Will you tell me about your revenge now?"

Sakura's stomach flipped like she'd fallen clean off the branch.

 _Of course,_ she realized.  _That's what this entire night was really about._ She kept her eyes trained on their hands and bit her lip.  _I need to buy time._  "Is this… is this information your reward for winning the bet?" she asked with a small, forced smile.

Sasuke responded with a look that told her he had no idea what she was talking about.

"You know, the one over the eraser. On the day we met Kakashi-sensei."

His eyes widened in understanding but he shook his head. "No," he said slowly. "I'm not trying to pressure you."

Sakura nodded as her smile faltered. "I… have no idea where to begin," she said and staring off into the distance so he couldn't see the panic written all over her face. Now what? He had her trapped up here in this damn tree, and she really didn't have time to formulate a believable cover-up.

 _This is what our game boiled down to, huh?_  Sasuke didn't care to help her with the dishes or play catch with pinecones. All along he was trying to soften her up so she'd give him the information he wanted.

A bitter taste rose in her mouth.  _That sneaky, manipulative Uchiha…_

"Well, how about I ask you some questions?" he said, and his question came out as a statement. Sakura nodded slowly and pulled her hands away from her teammate's healed ones. She figured that if she was selective with her answers, maybe this wouldn't be so bad. And it wasn't like Sasuke had any friends or secret correspondences who he confided in anyways. "All right then," he said. "You mentioned training under a mentor. Who is it?"

Sakura stared determinedly at her hands, racking her brain for a convincing lie. She couldn't think of one.

_Oh, to hell with it all._

"One of the three Legendary Sanin," she answered quietly.

"I've heard about them," was Sasuke's reply, his voice filled with surprise. "Which one?"

Sakura gulped. This was risky but it was too late to go back now. "Tsunade Senju. One of the most powerful medical ninjas in the world. I am – or  _was_  – her apprentice." Sakura started channeling medical chakra to her own cuts to busy herself.

"That explains a lot," Sasuke mumbled.

"But she doesn't know who I am anymore," she added hurriedly. "A… um, an incident happened and her memories of me were erased." Sakura's hands began to tremble because technically she wasn't lying. Sasuke seemed to notice her discomfort and didn't ask for details on the incident. He waited patiently for her to continue. "And just before the incident, she assigned me a mission."

"A mission?" he repeated. "Is that what your revenge is about? Completing a mission?"

"Yeah," she said. Her palms were fully healed now but she continued staring down at them intently. "I was appointed the mission because apparently my mentor thought I would get strong enough to complete it, and… well, because I have a personal investment in the cause." Her voice was shaking now. "I… I don't really want to talk about it."

Sakura could hardly believe what she was voicing. It was easy – far too easy – to see Sasuke as a confidant figure. And as nice as having someone to talk to was, she was getting far too close to exposing more about herself than she probably should.

After a moment, Sasuke said, "I'm sorry." Sakura daringly allowed her eyes to flicker to his face but when she saw how intensely he was watching her, she averted them again. "Just one more question for now," he said, and Sakura mentally released a huge sigh of relief. Sasuke clearly sensed her discomfort and was winding this conversation down. "You said that someone important to you was taken away," he continued and Sakura's heart immediately began to pound. "Were you talking about your mentor?"

 _He just had to ask about that…_ Sakura thought with a grimace.  _He's perceptive, isn't he_? Sasuke had clearly paid attention to her introductory speech a month ago. "No," she answered and shaking her head. "But it's someone who I… who I love more than anything." She had an unnerving hunch that her face was flaming red now. She didn't anticipate the conversation taking a turn in this direction.

_This is so awkward._

"Family?" he asked quietly.

"No, not family," she said and staring down at the ground below while fighting against the influx of painful memories.

Sakura sensed her teammate shift and hesitantly spared him a glance only to find that he was blinking at her with an expression of utter confusion. "Really? I didn't know you…," he started before abruptly turning his head in the opposite direction and letting out a slow breath. He was absently drumming his fingers against his kneecap.

Sakura puzzled over his unusual change in demeanor.

And then it dawned on her. She jerked her head upright.

Sasuke was now on his feet. "All right, that was the last question," he said curtly. "Let's head back. It's late."

"Sasuke, I-," she started, but he began his descent from the tree without sparing her a glance, leaving Sakura alone on the branch.

She couldn't believe the improbability of this situation. Something Sakura said had quite obviously shocked, perhaps even unsettled, her teammate. And she had an absurd, sneaking suspicion that she knew what it was.

_He thinks I'm in love with someone else._

 

__

Source: lesbrasdemer, https://lesbrasdemer.tumblr.com/post/151687918913/so-ive-been-reading-this-awesome-fanfiction-a


	11. The Survivor

Naruto barged into Tazuna's kitchen the following morning while the rest of Team Seven was eating breakfast. All heads spun in his direction. It turned out Naruto also snuck out to train the previous night and this was the first time his team had seen him since. His orange jacket and pants were covered in dirt, his hair was a mess, and he looked extremely disheveled.

"Where have you been?" Kakashi asked nonchalantly, but the way his eyebrow arched told Sakura that he was concerned.

"Guys, I don't know how to say this, but…," Naruto started and taking a very pronounced gulp. He anxiously ran a hand through his matted, blonde hair. Everyone stared expectantly. "So I… I met the most attractive boy ever last night."

Sakura 's jaw nearly hit the table and Sasuke turned away to spit out the tea he was sipping.

Naruto, who seemed totally oblivious to his teammates' reactions, carried on with his story. "Like…  _attractive_ attractive," he added, slightly breathlessly. "He was even prettier than Sakura-chan." He plopped himself down on the seat next to Sakura. "Am I  _ever_  confused now."

And after that comment, he sure wasn't the only confused one.

Sakura shook her head and took a long sip from her own mug of tea. She had a hunch Naruto had an encounter with a mask-less Haku. Haku, the ninja assassin who accompanied Zabuza, had feminine enough features that he frequently crossed-dressed during his espionage missions.

Kakashi set his own mug down. "Well, not that this story doesn't sound  _interesting_ ," he said while rising to his feet, "but I'm going to pack my bag for our mission today." And then he stalked off, muttering something that sounded an awful lot like  _never ceases to amaze me_ under his breath.

Then Naruto, who was oblivious to Sasuke and Sakura's dumbfounded expressions, beckoned for them to listen closely. "So don't tell Kakashi-sensei, but I snuck out to train in the middle of the night," he whispered with a mischievous grin.

Sakura rolled her eyes. Everyone in the house was quite aware of Naruto's late night escape after that dramatic entrance.

"That's when I met the pretty guy. And  _man_ was I ever let down when I found out that she was a  _he._  I thought it was my lucky night, if you know what I mean. Eh, Sasuke?" he added while nudging said teammate in the side and nearly causing him to spill his tea all over himself.

"Watch it, dumbass," Sasuke said with a scowl, but his comment went unnoticed by the blonde.

"What did you guys do last night, anyways?" Naruto, who was oblivious to Sasuke's death glare, asked Sakura. "I heard you both leave before me."

"We, um-," Sakura started, but Sasuke interrupted her.

"Nothing," he growled while putting his mug down with more force than he probably intended. Then Sasuke snatched up his empty plate and stormed over to the sink without another word, leaving his half-full mug behind.

Naruto let out a low whistle. "Geez, what's got his panties in a knot?" he asked Sakura with wide eyes. She shrugged and focused very intently on the egg she was eating.

***

Sasuke was relatively avoidant of his teammates for the rest of the day. In the morning, while they accompanied Tazuna as he worked away at the bridge with his crew, Sasuke claimed an area that was secluded from the other guarding posts. He barely spoke a word to the others, even to Kakashi when he asked Sasuke for a status report.

At lunchtime, when Sakura expressed that she was going to check on her makeshift hospital in the village, Sasuke immediately volunteered to spend lunch at the bridge. Kakashi complied and sent Naruto to the medical tent with Sakura instead.

"There's gotta be something huge up his ass today," Naruto said with a frown. "Normally he volunteers to go to the tent with you right away."

Sakura smiled weakly. "Yeah." She was certain now that something was bothering their dark-haired teammate. And the fact that his mood swing might be a product of their conversation the previous night angered Sakura a little.  _She_  was the one who had disclosed deeply personal information.  _She_ was the one who had possibly jeopardized her time travel mission by trusting him. So why the hell was  _he_  in such a bad mood? Because she might not be in love with him? Because he might not have her wrapped around his little finger like he thought he did?

_Please._

That selfish, possessive  _moron_.

It was times like this that Sakura questioned how she managed to fall in love with him in the first place.

***

Naruto spent the next night training so late that he nearly depleted all of his chakra and was physically incapable of waking up the following morning. Sakura, who was acutely aware that Zabuza could make a reappearance any day now, packed her weapon holster to the brim with weapons and medicinal ointments. She had also spent many hours contemplating persuading her team to avoid a battle with Zabuza altogether because, after all, it had no apparent relevance to her time travel mission and she knew they would barely make it out alive.

But Sakura opted to keep her mouth shut for four reasons: 1. her teammates would give her hell for asking them to back out; 2. she would rouse more suspicion in the mind of her ever-untrusting sensei if she tried to call the shots; 3. if Zabuza and Haku survived, they could complicate things in the long run; and 4. she wanted Gatō dead.

But as Sakura followed Kakashi, Sasuke, and Tazuna to the bridge that morning, she felt a hint of doubt. Because what if things were different this time? What if her newfound reputation in the village swayed the course of the battle somehow? What if Sasuke's unusual emotional state caused him to do something reckless?

And with a pang of guilt, Sakura remembered that it was Sasuke who barely escaped death last time they faced off against Zabuza and Haku. She was marching her beloved teammate towards his defeat.

_This can't play out like last time._

Sakura was realizing more than ever that travelling through time put her in a position of unfathomable power over the world around her. Her tiniest actions created a ripple effect that could change the outcome of just about any situation.

Including whether Sasuke would get out of this alive.

_I will need to stop Haku myself. And fast._

If she didn't get to Haku in time, he would trap Sasuke and Naruto inside his Crystal Ice Mirrors jutsu, which would inevitably lead to Sasuke sacrificing himself for Naruto and nearly dying. Although Naruto would later tap into the Nine Tailed Fox's chakra and wreak havoc on the battle field, Team Seven would leave the fight with far too many near-fatal casualties. If only Sakura could find a way to prevent Haku from using that jutsu and stall Zabuza for a little while, Gatō's army would eventually show up and finish them off anyways.

That being said, they couldn't kill Zabuza. They needed him to stay alive just long enough to kill Gatō and put an end to his tyranny over the Land of Waves. Because if any member of Team Seven killed Gatō themselves, the act would be interpreted as Konoha warmongering.

When the four of them arrived, Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura, and Tazuna were greeted by the dead bodies of the bridge builder's crew scattered across the bridge.

He cried out and Sakura's stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch because apparently the showdown with Zabuza would take place today. Tazuna motioned to run towards the corpses of his closest friends, but Kakashi held him back. "Zabuza is here," he hissed as thick fog began to cloud their visions. He positioned himself in front of the bridge builder and instructed for Sasuke and Sakura to cover his back. "Stay on guard. As you learned from our previous battle, Zabuza is trained in the art of silent killing and he won't hold back on any of us."

 _He's here all right,_ Sakura thought with a grimace. Equally as dense and disorientating as the fog, Zabuza's chakra was suddenly everywhere, chilling Sakura to the bone. The blood thirst was thick in the air and she couldn't stop the terror from welling up inside her. These enemies were, and always had been, so unreachably far out of her league.

But Sakura needed to stop Haku. She needed to get a hold of herself and have faith that her team would pull through somehow. Quietly, she dipped her fingertips into her weapon pouch to hook them around the handles of three poison-laced kunai while pumping chakra to the soles of her feet.

A haunting voice resounded through the mist.

"Welcome back, Tazuna… Kakashi…," Zabuza's deep voice echoed across the bridge. It resounded from all directions and rumbled through the ground beneath their feet. "I see you brought the troublesome brats with you again."

Sakura gripped her knives tightly and sensed Sasuke's body seize up beside her. Even the sharpest eyes were rendered nearly blind in this fog. "How could you do this Kakashi?" she heard Zabuza sneer. "That boy is practically trembling with fear!"

Sakura cast a quick glance at her teammate who was visibly shaking.  _Sasuke?_ It was unnerving to see the proud Uchiha clan survivor plunge into an emotional spiral. Sakura gritted her teeth.

Then they were surrounded by fifteen identical Zabuza replicas. Water clones.

Sasuke emitted a low growl. "I'm not  _afraid_ ," he bravely spat out. "It's the opposite – I'm fired up for a rematch!" Sakura smirked but didn't fail to catch the minuscule waver in her teammate's voice.

_He knows what we're up against. Sasuke's good, but against these guys..._

"Patience," the clones hissed in unison before vanishing entirely in splashes of water. Kakashi, Tazuna, Sakura, and Sasuke all jumped with surprise as cold liquid pooled around their feet.

_Where did he go? What's his next move?_

"There is a minor disturbance I must address first."

And that was when he struck.

Sakura's brain didn't process the soreness in her abdomen until she coughed and tasted blood. She emitted a straggled scream when the second blow made contact with her head.

She felt herself collapse to the pavement as white hot pain pulsed through her entire body.

And then she was staring into a pair of blood red eyes.

The bridge was on fire.

And then everything went black.

***

Sakura's body roused before she opened her eyes.

Her back was pressed against what felt like a cool, wet concrete surface, and something soft was touching her forehead. The air was heavy. And so were all the parts of her that weren't numb.

She ventured to open her eyes a sliver.

But she was met with an onslaught of fierce pangs reverberating through her skull.

 _Damn it_. Sakura had a head injury of some sort. This wasn't good. But she tried again because there was someone looming over her. And if that someone was an enemy, she was as good as dead being caught in a state like this.

But it wasn't an enemy. It was Tazuna and he was pressing a balled up hunk of fabric to her forehead. And that was about all she could see through the thick mist surrounding them.

_That's right – mist!_

Sakura groaned. "Where's Zabuza?" she said, the words scratching the dry inner lining of her throat.

"Sakura?" said Tazuna who jumped at the sound of her voice. "You're alive?"

Alive? Of course she was alive. Why would he ask that? "Where are the others?" she asked while using every bit of her strength to prop herself up into a sitting position. But  _goodness_ , did her body ever ache. And come to think of it, how did her dress get so bloody?

"Sakura, don't move. These are your sensei's orders. If you lose any more blood—" But Sakura promptly ignored him and motioned to rise to her feet. The world around her was spinning in and out of focus.  _But that's just the mist, isn't it?_

"Where are the others?" she repeated with more firmness as she started to regain focus. The last thing she remembered was preparing to engage in battle with Zabuza and Haku. But where were they now? Was she too late?

"Sakura, Kakashi told me to-"

"I don't give a  _shit_ about his orders!" Sakura yelled, practically shaking with fury. Or was it pain? She wasn't sure. "Tell me now! Where is Haku?"

Tazuna seemed to give up his attempt to keep her still and also rose to his feet. "He's dead, don't worry," he said, while pressing the cloth back to her forehead.

"Dead?" Sakura echoed with a surge of horror.

It was too late. Haku was dead, which meant that Sasuke was already dying.

Sakura's legs moved instinctively, propelling her blindly through the fog.

"Sakura, wait!" Tazuna called and jogging to keep up with her. "You got hit in the head and in the stomach! You are in no condition to join the fight," the large man wheezed.

And then, right on cue, Sakura coughed and more blood spilled from her mouth and splattered on the ground. She frowned _._ Zabuza's strikes must have done some damage after all. "I'll be fine," she said while pressing her hand to her stomach and feeling her medical chakra flicker to life in her palm. "I'll heal myself enough to move. Where's Sasuke's body?"

She caught Tazuna's look of bewilderment out of the corner of her eye as her legs carried her through the mist. "Body? I don't know what you mean. I'd presume Sasuke is still fighting Zabuza with the others."

Sakura stopped dead in her tracks. "What?" she asked, shock laced in her tone. "What do you mean he's fighting?"

Tazuna's expression became increasingly perplexed. "Well I mean, the fight with Haku probably took a lot out of him, but I don't think he'd leave the others to deal with Zabuza on their own. Oh, and Naruto got here just after Haku was defeated."

_Wait. Naruto never fought Haku?_

Sakura's mind was racing. "I don't understand," she said. "Haku was supposed to kill Sasuke…"

Tazuna shook his head. "No, you have it mixed up," he said. "Sasuke killed Haku."

***

Sakura wasn't sure how she was physically capable, but she was sprinting like a madman through the fog. Her head was spinning and just about every inch of her body was throbbing with pain, but she needed to find her team. She needed answers. To see the outcome with her own two eyes.

As she ran, Tazuna filled her in on the events she missed. Zabuza attacked her first, likely to cut off the team's supply of medical support, and everyone thought she was dead. Sasuke went berserk and made to launch his own attack on Zabuza, but Haku stepped in, and from there, a battle between the young prodigies ensued. By the time Naruto showed up, Haku was already dead, and that was when Kakashi ordered Tazuna to bring Sakura's body as far away from the battle as possible.

Tracking their chakra signatures, Sakura managed to locate her teammates a short while after. She and Tazuna looked on from about a fifty metres away, and yes, just how she remembered it, there was Kakashi, engaged in a close-combat fight with Zabuza. But then… a flash of orange? Naruto was there too this time, barraging the Demon with his shadow clones. And if Tazuna was right about Naruto joining in on Kakashi's fight, then what about Haku? And what about…

_Oh!_

Sakura's heart leapt when she caught sight of her dark-haired teammate springing into the air and firing a handful of weapons at the enemy. He was  _alive._ But Sakura couldn't help noticing that he was moving rather slowly. And that his chakra levels were so dangerously low that she could hardly sense them. His limbs were dotted with puncture wounds and bruises and he was fighting from a much greater distance than the others.

Zabuza himself appeared to be struggling. His arms were incapacitated by kunai piercing just the right muscles in his biceps, rendering his monstrous sword unusable, which gave Team Seven a significant advantage.

To her far right, a dark mass was piled on the ground. Sakura squinted her eyes through the mist.  _Could that be Haku?_

"All right, Naruto – now!" Kakashi then shouted. Naruto's clones sprang into action by surrounding the Demon and taking hold of his arms and legs to secure him in place.

Kakashi crouched into a low battle stance and pulled his hands together to form seals for a jutsu. Within seconds, a familiar ear-splitting  _chirping_  met Sakura's ears and an electric blue light emerged in Kakashi's palm. It was a Chidori – Kakashi's signature Lightning style attack that transformed his hand into an impenetrable blade of concentrated electricity.

It quickly dawned on Sakura what this move implied. This would be the last blow. And Haku wasn't alive to get in the way this time. Zabuza was about to die.

Which meant that Gatō would live.

"Stop!" Sakura cried before she could restrain herself and while ignoring Tazuna's shouts of protest. She pushed past the bridge builder and raced towards the others with every ounce of strength she had left.

Sasuke, who was crouched with his back facing her, was alerted to her presence first, but Sakura couldn't afford to pay him any mind because Kakashi hadn't noticed her yet. He was still too far away. His Chidori was at full capacity, the chirping and crackling was growing louder and louder, and his eyes were trained on his target. And then Kakashi started to move, his lightening blade making its steady descent towards Zabuza's heart…

Sakura's body acted on its own.

She loaded her fists with all the chakra she could muster, and she was thrusting them into the bridge's surface before she could fully process her actions. She directed the force of her punch toward Kakashi, and a trail of explosions shot outwards from her fists along the bridge's surface, blasting the concrete to pieces.

As planned, Kakashi was thrown off course when the ground beneath him started to crumble, forcing him to spring backwards and away from Zabuza. Naruto's clones disappeared, leaving behind only the real Naruto clinging to Zabuza's left arm, and Sasuke was thrown backwards onto the ground from the sheer force of Sakura's attack.

All heads spun in her direction with expressions of utter shock. Naruto was the first to speak. "Sakura-chan! You're alive?!" he cried.

"Not for long."

It seemed that Naruto had slackened his grip on Zabuza's arm, and combined with the absence of his clones, the Demon broke free. Before Sakura knew it, he was directly before her and aiming a chakra-enhanced kick at her hardly-healed abdomen.

 _Shit_ , Sakura thought in horror. She didn't have any time to defend herself. He was too fast and her body was too weak to move. She crossed her arms over her torso in a fruitless attempt to block his kick and squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the impact.

But it didn't come.

Well, not the impact she was expecting at least. Something slammed into Sakura, square in the chest with a force that nearly sent her collapsing backwards. A body. She steadied herself and gained her bearings, only to find a pair of Sharingan glaring at her.

 _No_.

Sasuke had taken the blow and it got him square in the back. "What are you doing?" he hissed through clenched teeth and as quickly as they appeared, his red irises flickered and reverted to their usual shade of black. Sakura took one proper look at her teammate's face and felt her stomach churn. Sasuke's skin was ghostly white, smeared with blood, and his eyes were glazed over with complete exhaustion. His chakra reserves were almost entirely depleted.

He stirred when Zabuza spoke next. "Haven't had enough yet, Uchiha?" the Demon growled and coiling his leg to strike again.

The briefest trace of fear flashed in Sasuke's dark, blood-shot eyes. Because he was defenseless and with the right release of chakra, Zabuza was in a prime position to kill him.

_No!_

Sakura was frozen as Zabuza lunged towards them at an unstoppable speed, his dark chakra blazing.

Sasuke ducked his head and squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for a fatal blow.

A sickening snap resounded.

They were in a vortex of red chakra.

Sakura's head snapped up. She knew this chakra, and instinctively, her body seized.

Naruto was standing between Sasuke and Zabuza and gripping Zabuza's poised leg. The Demon howled in pain as Naruto clawed his taloned hand even more tightly around his opponent's broken calf. Then, with a mighty roar, Naruto launched Zabuza into the air. The Demon collided into the rail of the bridge with a crash.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried, trembling, and taking a step in front of Sasuke, who was gaping at his blonde teammate. Naruto turned in response to Sakura's voice.

The eyes of the Nine Tailed Fox bore into hers.

Naruto emitted a low growl and Sakura's blood ran cold, but she didn't have time to process her fear because Zabuza had reappeared, reverting Naruto's focus back to his enemy. Kakashi also emerged from the mist with a kunai in hand, and he launched himself at Zabuza.

Naruto lowered to all fours in a cloak of red chakra, preparing to pounce at the two ninjas battling before him. With a surge of panic, Sakura realized that in this state, he wouldn't distinguish between Kakashi and Zabuza. She could feel the Nine Tail's blood lust radiating through the air. He was going to attack whoever crossed his path.

"Naruto, stop!" she cried and extending her hand towards him.

Naruto whirled around, his fangs bared, and recklessly swung his clawed hand to silence her.

Everything went black for the second time.

***

"What's the verdict?"

"She'll live. I suspect she'll be awake any day now."

"Thank you. If it wasn't for your hard work, we might have lost her."

"Well, we wouldn't be here without her. She saved her own life, really."

Sakura creaked her eyes open. Two figures were standing at the foot of the small bed she was lying in. They were engulfed in whiteness.

Her eyelids snapped apart.  _White! Is that Zabuza's mist?_

But no, it wasn't. She was in what appeared to be a tiny hospital room surrounded by white curtains. And she knew the figures at the end of her bed. They weren't enemies.

"K-Kakashi-sensei?" she said weakly and motioning to sit up, only to realize that she physically couldn't. Her body was drained of energy and covered in bandages, and her arm was hooked up to an IV.

Kakashi turned to face her. "Oh, you're up," he observed and approaching the bedside.

The medic he was speaking to beamed. "Sakura-sama! I'm so glad to see you awake. I'll go inform the others," she said before vanishing through the white curtains.

"Where are the others?" Sakura croaked and gazing up at her sensei once they were alone. She was feeling extremely light-headed.

"Naruto and Sasuke are fine," Kakashi said and easing himself into the chair beside her bed.

She nodded slowly. "And Gatō?"

"Dead," Kakashi confirmed curtly. Sakura felt relief wash over her. "After he hurt you, Naruto came back to his senses. But before we could make another move on Zabuza, Gatō's army showed up. Zabuza killed him and he died of his own injuries shortly after." He pulled out his orange book and leaned back into the chair. "The enemies are gone. Go to sleep," he added bluntly.

_This is… exactly what I hoped would happen._

Sakura eased herself back into the bed. "Yes," she breathed and graciously taking up his offer.

***

When Sakura roused again, she was feeling immensely better. Her back was propped up this time, and both the bandages and the IV had been removed. She gazed around the small, empty room and realized that she must be in her own makeshift hospital. Where did they get the IVs from? And when did they get curtains? The place was getting quite sophisticated.

That was when Sasuke walked in her room through a small slit in the curtains.

His eyes immediately widened when they met hers and Sakura felt her stomach give a lurch.  _Looks like he really did make it out okay._

For a fleeting moment, his expression relaxed. And then something snapped.

In a heartbeat, Sasuke was towering over her, his hands balled into fists and his Sharingan whirring to life.

"What the  _hell_ were you thinking?" he spat.

Sakura's back instinctively pressed into the hospital bed, and as old memories resurfaced, she half-expected him to curl his fingers around her throat. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. The black markings on Sasuke's red irises were spinning wildly. "Why did you interfere?" he practically growled.

She opened her mouth again. But all she could muster up was, "Your… eyes…"

Sasuke blinked down at her for a moment before sighing heavily and dropping onto the chair at her bedside. He put his head in his hands. "Yeah. I finally figured out how to use these," he mumbled without looking up.

Sakura watched him and bristled with pride in spite of everything. Because the abilities that came with the Uchiha clan's revered Sharingan were formidable. Those eyes would allow Sasuke to visualize opponents' attacks before they happened and craft unmatched genjutsus.

Sakura also knew that Sharingan tended to surface in its users when they were experiencing intense distress. Which meant that… right now…

She bit her lip. "I'm sorry. I understand that what I did on the bridge was reckless, and I didn't mean–"

But Sasuke cut her apology short.

"You don't understand what it means if you died," he said quietly into his hands.

Sakura blanched. "What?" she said slowly, and then it hit her like the crash of a monstrous ocean wave.

If she died, the time travel mission was over. And Tsunade  _specifically_  told Sakura that she needed to stay alive until three days before her eighteenth birthday or else the world would revert to its former state. A state of chaos and destruction. A world where Sasuke wasn't saved, Orochimaru was at large, and the fate of the Leaf Village was annihilation.

What the hell  _was_ she thinking?

Tears formed in the corners of her eyes, and before Sakura could get a hold of herself, she let out a tiny sob.

Sasuke's head jerked up with surprise. "Wait, stop," he said, and turning around in the chair to face her. But she couldn't stop, and tears were spilling from her lower eyelids and trickling down her cheeks. "Stop crying," Sasuke ordered again, traces of panic appearing in his voice. He wasn't particularly good at comforting people and the sight of his teammate's tears seemed to offset him. He hastily dragged the back of his index finger over her cheek to wipe off a tear. "It's fine. You're alive."

Sakura opened her mouth to choke out some words of reassurance, but that was when Naruto burst in through the curtains.

"Sakura-chan!" he wailed and making a beeline for her bed. "I'm  _sorry_!" And next thing she knew, Naruto's arms were wrapped around her shoulders and he was crushing her into the bed. "I'm so, so sorry!"

"Get off, dumbass," Sasuke snapped. "She can't breathe."

"O-oh right!" Naruto stammered through enormous sobs before releasing her. He was crying even harder than Sakura was.

"It's all right, Naruto," she said and smiling up at him as well as she could. "It wasn't your fault." And she knew it wasn't. Naruto had injured her countless times in the Nine Tailed Fox's form. She was used to it.

"I'm  _sorry_ ," he said again and gripping her hand so tightly that it hurt. "So many things happened and I just… I need to tell you guys something."

Sakura and Sasuke looked up.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto took a deep breath and what he said next made Sakura forget the pain in her hand entirely.

"Haku lived."


	12. Striking a Deal

Two days upon Team Seven's return to Konoha, Sakura found herself in an enormous lab on the upper floors of the village's hospital gathering the medical supplies for a hysterectomy. Only minutes prior, Sakura had been informed that a middle-aged female villager was found to have uterine fibroids causing internal bleeding beyond the repair of medical ninjutsu. Her uterus needed to be removed lest her life be in jeopardy.

Now the real question is how Sakura winded up preparing for such a complicated procedure in the first place.

Well, once Sakura's wounds healed, Team Seven's mission in the Land of Waves came to a close. After an informal burial was held for Zabuza, Tazuna announced that he would name his bridge after the village's heroes: Team Seven. And after what they'd gone through for a mission they were only paid B-Ranked mission wages for, they deserved it. In addition to sparking bravery among the Land of Waves citizens to stand up to Gatō, eliminating a dangerous, rogue mercenary, and ensuring that the bridge connecting the land to neighbouring nations was constructed safely, a certain member of Team Seven also single-handedly revolutionized the nation's health care system.

"Bridge Seven," Tazuna had said thoughtfully amidst their final farewells. "It has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Sakura smiled to herself while she polished a knife for the surgery.

It certainly did.

As it turned out, personnel at the hospital in Konoha seemed to know of her  _Pink Medic_ reputation before she even showed up for her volunteer shift that morning. Promptly, Sakura was escorted to a small office and instructed to write a particularly challenging exam that entry-level medics were required to take. Despite the short notice and lack of resources she had to study from, Sakura aced it. She not only wrote this exam but was also responsible for evaluating incoming medics' responses to this very test in her former life.

Sakura's examiners were stunned by her flawless test score and agreed that she was entitled to an enormous promotion. However, there were a few notable limitations. First, she didn't have "enough experience" to work as a medic (or so it seemed), and she was only available to work part-time due to her ninja training.

So what was agreed upon was that Sakura would work in a paid role as a doctor's personal assistant.

And she really couldn't complain about the opportunity. After spending weeks filing documents for free, being offered a salary and a chance to work in an environment where she might enhance her medical ninjutsu was a huge upgrade.  _Finally_  she would get a chance to network with superiors, access the hospital's textual resources, and earn more money to expand her personal stockpile of weapons and medical supplies.

Alas, after lunch on the day she wrote the exam, Sakura was positioned under the supervision of a doctor named Ayame and instructed to help her with an upcoming procedure: a hysterectomy.

For now, Sakura's recent concerns over having a growing reputation were on the backburner. Because things were looking pretty good since the mission in the Land of Waves.

And what became of Haku? Sakura saw him once, only briefly, while he was being patched up in her makeshift hospital after the battle. He was tried immediately afterwards and, according to Naruto, was released on the conditions that he completed a few months of community service work and that his future activity was monitored. He obliged to the arrangement graciously.

Sakura couldn't help wondering if Haku's survival would change the course of events. Surely it would somehow. But, as Kakashi had said after Sasuke voiced his own concerns about the masked boy roaming free, "Haku isn't an enemy anymore. Tazuna is our client and he's convinced the boy isn't a threat, so our services are no longer needed."

And, of course, Kakashi was right. It would be foolish to chastise Haku further. Meddling in the Land of Waves' internal affairs without warrant could even spark international conflict.

So whether or not Haku surviving was a good thing, for now, it wasn't Sakura's problem.

***

When Sakura arrived home after the mission, she was relieved the find that the time travel scroll was safe and sound in her underwear drawer and that the Transformation jutsu she put on it ages ago was still holding. She examined the scroll carefully for any indication that it had been tampered with while she was away. It passed her inspection. None of the traps Sasuke laid out in her room had been set off either.

She exhaled deeply with relief and folded the lacy red underwear back into the drawer.

After her morning shower on the third day back in the village, Sakura paused before her body-length mirror after she'd pulled on her signature black shorts and red training dress with slits down the side. Her body was leaner and notably more toned than it was a month ago when she started her new life. It was still much smaller than it used to be, naturally (and less curvy too, she noted), but she didn't look as much like a scrawny twig.

She smiled at her reflection. "Let's keep this up," she mumbled to herself. "And soon we'll be stronger than I was when I was older." She chuckled softly at how ridiculous the statement sounded before slipping on her head protector, grabbing her weapon pouch, backpack, and wallet, and setting out for the Academy.

***

Only nine Academy students in Sakura's year graduated to become full-fledged ninjas. The nine (commonly referred to as "the Rookie Nine" among their seniors) consisted of Teams Seven, Eight, and Ten. And for the first time since their graduation a month ago, the group would assemble at the Academy today to write progress reports.

When Sakura entered the classroom, one member from each team was already there.

Shikamaru Nara, the lazy genius from Team Ten, had his feet propped up on his desk near the door and appeared to be napping. He was wearing his default unimpressed look, with his long nose crinkled and his lips pulled into a frown, and his long, brown hair was tied in a tight ponytail at the crown of his head. Without question, he was only here so early because his mother forced him to be. If it were up to him, he'd spend his days watching clouds and playing board games.

 _Having such a high IQ must be tiring indeed,_ Sakura thought.

Hinata Hyūga from Team Eight was sitting quietly in the middle of the classroom with her hands clasped together. The fidgety girl with a black bob cut and powder-white skin was wearing a signature beige sweater with her forehead protector loosely tied around her neck. Sakura returned Hinata's shy wave with a smile as she passed by. Hinata was such a sweet, gentle girl whom many doubted would ever make a good ninja. However, given the unique abilities she had acquired from what was arguably the second most elite clan in Konoha (after the Uchiha clan), and the raging perseverance that lurked within her, Sakura knew otherwise.

And at the desk nearest the window sat Sasuke Uchiha of Team Seven. He was usually quite punctual, so it was no surprise to find him in the classroom early. He probably didn't have much else to do, Sakura figured, since he lived alone and his hobbies consisted of training and more training. Sasuke was gazing out at the Academy grounds with a characteristically serious expression planted on his face and a faraway look in his dark eyes. When he sensed Sakura approach the desk, he nodded in greeting and shifted along the bench so she could sit beside him.

Sakura took her seat and cast her teammate a sideways glance. They hadn't interacted one-on-one since their strange exchange in the hospital after their battle with Zabuza. She never properly thanked him for sacrificing himself for her, and he never explained his mysterious hissy fit (that Sakura was sure had to do with him thinking she was in love with someone else).

Sakura sucked in a breath. "Good morning," she tried politely while pulling a notebook out of her bag and placing it on her desk.

"Morning," Sasuke grunted without pulling his eyes away from the window. He didn't seem to be in a talking mood. Sakura fiddled with her writing utensils while trying to think of what to say next when she noticed that Shino had slipped in unnoticed and was sitting next to Hinata at Team Eight's desk. That guy had to be the weirdest of the rookies, and not only because his specialty was controlling bugs. The bespectacled, thin Genin with thick brown hair and a collar that covered the lower half of his face communicated with others even  _less_ than Sasuke did and had a strange way of making himself almost entirely unnoticeable.

Sakura's eyes drifted towards the door just as Ino entered the room.

The platinum blonde's head was held high, her charismatic demeanor practically radiating through the room upon her entry.

Until her eyes landed on Sakura's, that is.

Ino shot a seething glare at Team Seven's desk through icy, blue eyes before turning her head away and taking her seat next to the napping Shikamaru.

Sakura's stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch at her friend's cold behaviour. And it didn't take her long to realize why Ino was acting like this. The last time they'd seen each other, she'd interrupted Sakura hugging Sasuke in front of the hospital in thanks for his surprise gifts.

Sakura groaned and rubbed her temples.  _I don't have time for this…_ she thought and wondering how girls, including her former self, could be so petty. She needed to fix her friendship with Ino. And fast. After all, Sakura's supply of medical herbs was running low and Ino was her only source.

Casting a disgruntled glance at her black-haired teammate, Sakura decided that she would prove to her friend that nothing was going on between her and Sasuke. She  _needed_ to if she was to salvage whatever was left of their rocky friendship.

Instinctively, Sakura shifted a few inches away from Sasuke along the bench. He didn't seem to notice.

Chōji walked in next, holding a bag of chips. The round, brunette boy was smiling, with chip crumbs smeared across his chin, as he trotted towards the desks. He greeted his teammates and seemed oblivious that one was fast asleep and the other was glaring daggers at the wall. Now nearly everyone was here. That only left–

"Get back here you cheating  _dirt bag_!"

–the two loudest members of Rookie Nine: Kiba Inuzuka from Team Eight, and of course, Naruto Uzumaki from Team Seven. Ino was a close third on a scale of loudness, but Naruto always took the cake.

Said orange-clad blonde came flying through the door moments later with Kiba close on his heels. "I win!" Naruto exclaimed while punching a celebratory fist into the air and skipping over to his desk.

Kiba, dressed in a signature fur-lined jacket (with his small, white dog, Akamaru, peeking out near the collar), folded his arms and scowled. "Fat chance," he snapped, his pointed canines flashing and dark eyes narrowing. "You pinned me to the ground with a clone to get a head start. I demand a rematch."

"I decline," Naruto beamed while taking his seat next to Sakura. "Just accept defeat, dog breath."

Kiba looked furious. He brandished an accusatory finger at Team Seven's desk and bellowed, " _You_ just think you're all high and mighty because your team got a bridge named after it!  _Pfft_! We all know you guys are nothing special." A bitterness had crept into his voice that made Sakura tense. Now Kiba was looking around at the other members of Team Eight and Ten for support. The only support he seemed to get, however, was from Ino, who was sneering. The others, save Shikamaru, glanced in their direction.

Naruto climbed up onto the table. "Oh yeah?" he retorted at the top of his lungs. "I think  _you_ guys just can't handle the fact that we're  _better_ than –," but Naruto couldn't finish his thought because Sakura clamped a hand over his mouth and pulled him into a headlock.

" _Shut up_ , Naruto!" she hissed and dragging him back down to his seat. The last thing she needed was for the rest of Rookie Nine to turn against her team. Sure, they were a bunch of goofballs now, but Sakura knew that in a few years' time, they would all be vital allies. And she couldn't afford to jeopardize that. Especially with her and Ino already being on shaky ground.

"Why should I?" Naruto asked her with a pout. "If he's got a problem with our team, I'll teach him a lesson!"

Sakura rubbed her temples and shot a pleading look at Sasuke only to find that he was determinedly staring out the window, clearly wanting nothing to do with this exchange.

_I really can't blame him._

"Because… because if you're quiet enough, I'll treat you to ramen after this," she said hurriedly. And, as anticipated, at her mention of Naruto's favourite R-word, everything changed.

"Ramen?" he repeated, his expression softening into something rather dreamy. "That would be nice, Sakura-chan. Thanks!" And, just like that, all thoughts of Kiba were momentarily erased from his mind.

Sakura sighed with relief, thankful that her blonde teammate was rather predictable that this age. Because being on good terms with the other rookies was in her best interest. They all had uniquely advantageous abilities and, if she needed help executing her revenge, they were more likely to listen to her than the adults of the village.

Shortly after, Iruka walked into the room, ushered Kiba to his seat, and started distributing the progress reports.

***

Naruto finished answering his progress report first (Sakura suspected because his answers were incomplete). He waited outside of the classroom until Sakura finished hers too. "So… still up for ramen?" he asked excitedly, practically bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

"Sure," Sakura answered with a smile. She honestly missed spending time with her dear friend. Despite this young version of Naruto being, well, more of a handful than the older Naruto, she genuinely enjoyed his energetic presence. Sakura also had a hunch that her teammate still felt bad about hurting her in his Nine Tail's form, and she wanted to prove to him that he had her complete trust.

Sakura was actually intending to ask Sasuke to tag along, but he finished his progress report before she did and left the room without backwards glance.

Once they took their seats at the bar in Ichiraku and placed their orders, Naruto said, "I swear I've wanted to have lunch with you for  _years_! Who would have guessed that I just needed to fight with Kiba for you to agree? Maybe I should do that more often." A cheeky grin sprouted on his lips.

"No, you  _shouldn't_ ," Sakura snapped. "Look Naruto, I know he's a little loud and competitive but… that doesn't mean Kiba is a bad person. Appearances can be deceiving, you know."

Naruto seemed to be in deep contemplation. "You're onto something, Sakura-chan," he mused. "I mean, look at that Haku guy. He came off like an evil criminal, but once we got talking, I realized that if we'd met any other way, we could have been really good friends." He smiled into the distance for a moment before turning back to Sakura with a mischievous look in his eye. "Want me to let you in on a secret?" he added, and peering around for eavesdroppers for dramatic effect. "Haku is my pen pal now!"

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Oh yeah," Naruto said, evidently pleased with himself. "I mean, I've only sent him one letter so far, but he said he'll update me on how things are going in the Land of Waves."

"Do you think you could… keep me in the loop?" Sakura asked. She tried to pull off a look of mild interest while inwardly bubbling over with curiosity. It would be interesting to learn what changes stemmed from the altered battle outcome.

"Hmmm," Naruto said and scrunching up his face in contemplation while their hot bowls of ramen were set down on the counter. " _Maybe_ ," he drawled in his usual sneaky manner, "but only if you treat me to ramen more often."

Sakura shook her head, her mouth too full of ramen to retort.

"You know," Naruto added thoughtfully between loud slurps, his voice lowering to a serious, matter-of-fact tone. "That's how you make good relationships with people. You buy them stuff."

Sakura was about to make a comment about how  _he_ had never offered to buy  _her_ anything when her mind drifted to her other blonde friend. The one who she was certain hated her guts right now.

_Maybe that's what it would take to make amends with Ino – to buy her something. But… what?_

A gift? A token of apology? But what would Ino want? And what was Sakura really apologizing for in the first place?

She frowned at her bowl. Regardless, she vowed to pay a visit to the flower shop right after lunch.

Her conversations with Naruto during the meal were lighthearted and a little nostalgia-inducing. A few months ago, in fact, Sakura had grabbed lunch with a taller, smarter version of this same guy, and as expected, on both occasions, he found plenty of things to whine about. And today, Naruto's complaint subject of choice was the progress report he just wrote.

" _Honestly_ though… that one question about goals and directions? What was that all about?"

Sakura sighed. "Question sixteen. With the goals you listed for question fifteen in mind, describe the direction you should take in your personal training," she recited. "It's not that hard Naruto. Like if your goal is to improve your taijutsu, just list the drills you'll practice."

Naruto was staring blankly at her. "Whoa!" he exclaimed with startling enthusiasm. "As  _if_  you recited that exact question from memory. Do you have a super brain or something?" He chuckled to himself before taking another huge slurp of noodles. "Well, I guess I got that question wrong," he mumbled. "I wrote 'left'."

But Sakura's mind was trained on his first comment. A super brain?  _Well, I suppose I've always had top marks at –_

And then it hit her.

Her  _brain._

Acing the medical exam at the hospital. Her photographic memory of the progress report. Time travel…

 _How_ didn't she think of this before?

What  _did_  happen to her brain when she travelled through time? Through her years of medical studies, Sakura had done extensive research in neuroanatomy. And one of the ground rules of the discipline was  _neuroplasticity_ – the notion that the brain changes shape over time. Well, more specifically, as a person ages and acquires knowledge, the brain gains new folds and wrinkles, allowing it to make complex connections it hadn't been able to previously. So as one learns, their brain changes physically.

Sakura's mind was reeling. So… what brain did she have? The brain of a young teenager or the brain of an old teenager? Brains were  _physical_ , like any other part of the body, and Sakura's body was, quite evidently, currently that of  _young_ teenager.

Then why did she ace the medical exam that morning? Sakura still had her older teenager mind and memories – she was certain of it! Did that mean her brain defied the physical properties of time travel? Then again,  _was_ time travel only physical? And if it wasn't, then what–

"Um…Sakura-chan?"

Sakura was pulled back to the present with a lurch only to find that someone new had arrived on the scene.

"Is it okay if Hinata joins us?" Naruto asked with a huge smile.

"Hi, Sakura-san," the girl said shyly from her seat next to Naruto and tucking a stray strand of her short, black hair behind her ear. Hinata's face was a fiery shade of red (showcasing her monstrous crush on a certain foxy blonde boy… who was completely oblivious to her feelings). "I don't want to intrude but… I'm just here to apologize for Kiba's behaviour today."

It took Sakura a moment to remember what she was referring to. "Oh. It's fine. Don't worry about it, Hinata," Sakura said with a smile, but she was struggling to focus. She was feeling quite lightheaded.

"Please join us for lunch, Hinata-chan!" Naruto offered and patting the seat beside him. "It's Sakura's treat!"

Sakura seconded Naruto's claim (after rolling her eyes), and from there, it didn't take much persuading for Hinata to take up the offer.

Sakura was trapped in a thought spiral for the rest of lunch and dismissed herself a little early, explaining to the others that she was probably coming down with something. She left a wad of money on the counter to pay for all three meals (which, in retrospect, would be better-spent on weapons), and left the restaurant in a daze.

Right when her life was starting to make sense, this new realization had to find its way to the forefront of her mind. What did it mean if she had an older brain in a younger body? Did it mean her brain would continue to evolve with time, making her  _smarter_ than she was in her past life? Or was her brain frozen like this?  _Or_  had she just underestimated how intelligent her younger brain was?

Sakura felt a headache come on.  _Man, I would give an arm and a leg to get my hands on an MRI machine right about now!_  Even though she was working at the hospital, only technicians and highly skilled medics had access to the expensive machines in the radiation wing.

"We need to talk."

A voice entered Sakura's consciousness. She froze in place and after a moment, realized that someone was standing near the building she was walking past.

She turned towards the voice and there was Sasuke, leaning against the brick wall with his arms folded across his chest. His eyebrow was arched and he had an impassively cool expression plastered on his face.

And yes, he looked cool all right. Rather attractive too, in Sakura's opinion.  _But… what_ kind  _of attraction is this?_ Was it mental attraction? Emotional? Sexual?

Because sexual attraction required the activation of certain hormones.

And hormones were produced in the brain.

Then… was Sakura  _capable_ of feeling physically attracted to Sasuke right now, in this body and with this brain? And if not, why did the mere sight of him set her autonomic responses on overdrive and fill her stomach with butterflies? Were these responses coming from something  _beyond_ the physical realm?

Her head was throbbing now.

_I think I'm going crazy._

_Wait, hold that thought. He just said something, didn't he?_

"You… you want to talk?" Sakura repeated and shaking her head in attempt to ward off her hyper-analytical train of thought.

Sasuke nodded curtly while shooting her a look that said I'm-not-going-to-repeat-myself-idiot. "Are you free right now?" he asked.

Sakura stared at him. Because if he were anyone but Sasuke Uchiha, she might have wondered if he was asking her out. But being the highly unordinary individual he was, Sakura knew this had to be about something else.

And  _was_  she free right now?  _Where am I going again?_  "I'm, uh… I'm heading to the flower shop," she said as she remembered her pledge to visit Ino.

"All right," Sasuke said, his expression indifferent. "So you're free. Let's go." And next thing she knew, Sakura was being dragged along the road by her wrist.

"W-wait!" she spluttered in confusion. "What's this all about? Where are we going?"

"Somewhere private," he answered over his shoulder without loosening his grip, as if she would run away if he did.

Eventually, Sakura regained her footing and managed to stride alongside him. She cast Sasuke a confused glance but he was determinedly staring straight ahead of them and didn't seem interested in elaborating.

***

Several minutes later, Sakura was standing in the entrance of Sasuke's flat.  _Well, that's where I_ think  _I am,_ she thought with a grimace and scanning the plain-looking hallway carefully.

Sasuke finally released her wrist and beckoned for her to follow him into a small, simple kitchen. "Sit," he instructed and nodding towards one of the chairs at the table. Hesitantly, Sakura slipped off her shoes and obeyed while wondering if she was currently being abducted by an impostor.

_Actually, that's not even a stretch of the imagination._

But before Sakura could demand who the hell he was, Sasuke spoke again. "Um… tea?" he asked a little awkwardly while removing his forehead protector and running a hand through his matted hair. He raised his eyebrows in Sakura's direction when she didn't respond.

"Oh," she said and blinking with surprise while easing herself onto one of the chairs. "Sure, I guess." Sasuke nodded and moved towards the kitchen counters.

Well, at this point, Sakura was certain of one thing: Sasuke lived here. It was funny how Sakura had never set foot in this flat before. Not once in her former life had Sasuke invited her over.

But Sakura wasn't ruling the impostor scenario out quite yet so she began scanning her surroundings for escape routes. However, the more her eyes wandered, the more she took note of things that had no relevance to an escape.

Sasuke's flat looked extremely tidy. But perhaps that had more to do with how empty it was. His living room, which was visible across the hall, had nothing more than the bare essentials – a couch, a shelf, a window. The same could be said for his kitchen. And aside from a single picture frame on the living room shelf, Sasuke clearly took no interest in unessential furnishings.

Sakura frowned towards the living room and wondered how much time Sasuke even spent in this boring, empty place. He preferred isolating himself from his peers, but he'd been living completely alone since he was eight years old when his family was killed. Surely, if he really liked living here on his own, he would have made an effort to make it look less like a prison cell.

Sakura jumped at the sound of Sasuke setting mugs down on the table. She spun in his direction, only to find that he was watching her curiously, clearly having caught her assessing his living quarters. She swallowed before hurriedly saying, "So, what's going on?" to change the topic.

"Right," he said and taking the seat opposite her. Sasuke rested his elbows on the table and surveyed her over his clasped fingers. "I need to talk to you about something."

Sakura remained silent, prompting Sasuke to continue but he was hesitating for some reason.  _What's he waiting for?_ Sasuke was normally quite blunt and direct with his inquiries.

And then, finally…

"I know what's in that drawer."

That drawer…?

_Hold it. He doesn't mean…_

"What drawer?" Sakura asked dumbly and pretending she had no idea what he was talking about. Because he just  _couldn't_ mean the drawer she was hiding the time travel scroll in. Or could he?

"The drawer in your bedroom," he said and averting his gaze. "The one you asked me to set extra traps around."

 _Oh God. He knows!_ Sakura began to panic. She must have spilled too much about her time travel mission after their pinecone fight. She  _knew_ she should have held her tongue! Now he knew everything, and her mission was as good as –

 _Wait._  But maybe he didn't know what the scroll  _was_?

Sakura gulped and put on the most collected face she could muster up. "What exactly did you find in that drawer?" she asked, emulating a professional tone. This was not a time to lose her composure. Maybe he was trying to get her to admit what the scroll was because he hadn't figured it out.

But to her surprise, Sasuke averted his eyes even further away from her, his face flushing. "Look, Sakura," he growled. "When you told me you had a stalker, I didn't know it was like  _that_. Why didn't you say anything?"

"Say anything?" she echoed, perplexed and noticing how his eyebrows were scrunched with worry.  _What did he find?_

_Oh. Wait…_

Sakura suddenly realized exactly what Sasuke found in her drawer. Exactly what  _was in_ her drawer.

 _My underwear._ Which meant that he thought her stalker was…

"You think I have a sexual predator after me," Sakura breathed, her jaw slowly dropping at the unanticipated turn of events.

Sasuke didn't acknowledge her comment. Rather, he stood up and began pacing back and forth with his hands clasped behind his back. Sakura took his lack of objection as a yes. Yes, Sasuke did think Sakura had a sexual predator after her.

"I didn't realize it was this serious," he said, amidst his pacing. "And since your  _significant other_  isn't around, I'll help you get rid of the stalker in his absence."

The wheels were turning slowly in Sakura's head. He must be referring to the person who she said she was in love with (who was, in fact, his future self). "I don't have a significant other, Sasuke," she said quickly and frowning in his direction.

He stopped his pacing. "Well, whatever you call him," Sasuke elaborated flatly. "Unless  _he's_ the stalker.

Sakura rose to her feet with a surge of unplaced anger. "No. I can assure you that he has no interest in me. He left and he's never coming back!" she spat, her voice rising.

Sasuke glanced at his teammate and raised his eyebrows. "He sounds like an asshole," he mumbled, traces of disgust written in his features.

Sakura resisted the untimely urge to snort. Because  _if only he knew who he was talking about._

"Anyways," Sasuke continued as if she'd never interrupted him. Sakura lowered back into her chair. "I'm going to help you capture your stalker."

Sakura blinked. "Wait, hold it," she said. "The traps are just…  _precautionary_. There might not even be anyone after me at all." And it was true. Sakura just had a terrible hunch.

But she was met with a disbelieving glare. "Whether or not you cooperate with me doesn't change anything," Sasuke said simply.

Sakura sighed and put her head in her hands. This was turning into a mess.

But then… she was struck by a brilliant idea.

"Fine. Fine! I'll cooperate with you," she said while swiveling in her chair and placing her hands on her knees. "But on one condition."

He folded his arms across his chest. "What condition?" Sasuke asked.

Before she could weigh the implications of her proposition, the words tumbled out of her mouth.

"You'll help me break into the hospital."


	13. Nightmare

It only took one shuddering breath for Sakura to realize that something was off, the unfamiliar air catching in her throat. It tasted far too musty and she could feel its heaviness weighing down on her exposed skin. She opened her eyes a crack to find that she was in a dark cell with her back pressed up against a cold, stone wall.

A jail cell? Now how on earth did she wind up in here? Sakura scanned her surroundings carefully for a means of escape but there were no windows or openings in sight.

Her vision was a little hazy and distorted, but through the darkness, she could make out the silhouette of a figure looming outside the bars of her cell. The figure placed a pale, white hand on one of the metal bars.

Fear pulsed through her when she recognized the figure's chakra signature.

It was Orochimaru's.

Sakura motioned to scramble to her feet but her body wasn't listening to her. Her limbs were so heavy that they were nearly immobile. Using all the strength she could muster, Sakura craned her neck towards the ground in search of a weapon, but there were none. Even her thigh was bare; her weapon holster was nowhere in sight. In fact, it appeared she was wearing a nightgown. And now that she got a proper look at herself, she noticed that something was different about her legs – they were muscular and toned.

With a lurch, Sakura realized she was back in her older body.

Which meant that the powers of the time travel scroll had broken.

Not that it mattered. Whichever life she was in, right now she was completely and utterly defenseless.

And then, to Sakura's horror, a pair of enormous snakes slithered between the bars and into her cell. They were as huge as pythons except jet black with bulging, yellow eyes piercing her hungrily. She opened her mouth to yell for help but no sound came out. That was when she felt scaly skin against her ankles as the snakes began coiling around her calves and spiraling up her bare legs. She couldn't move or speak. So she sat there, eyes wide with terror, as the snakes pinned her more firmly back against the wall.

A shift in her periphery indicated that the figure was now in her cell, staring down at her amusedly, his arms folded across his chest.

And it wasn't Orochimaru. It was Sasuke. The Sasuke of her old life.

Her heart sank. This couldn't be happening.

"Ah, Sakura," he drawled, his lips curling into a menacing smile, his hand leisurely resting on the handle of a sword secured at his hip. "It has been awhile," he added while tilting his head in greeting. Sakura withered against the tight hold of the snakes, trying to wrench her gaze away from the deranged look in Sasuke's blood red eyes. But she couldn't. His Sharingan were spinning and Sakura knew she had already fallen victim to his genjutsu spell.

She squinted up at her former teammate through the darkness while pushing against her scaly restraints, which were now twisting down the lengths of her arms.

It was no use. She couldn't move at all.

"What… what are you doing?" she stammered out hoarsely, finally finding her voice.

And then, to her surprise, Sasuke chuckled. The sound held an unkind, dangerous ring. He approached slowly and crouched over Sakura's trapped body, his red eyes wide and locked on hers the entire time. "There is no  _Sasuke_  here," he hissed while arching his body lower to shorten the gap between them.

"You are too late."

He raised his hand abruptly and Sakura half-expected Sasuke to strike her, but instead he clawed at his own forehead and started peeling away the skin on the right side of his face like a shedding snake.

His face beneath the peeled-back skin was white – so white that at first glance, Sakura thought it was bone. But then a long, narrow tongue curled past his parted lips and his eyes rolled back into his skull. They were replaced by the yellow eyes of a snake. And that wasn't his skeleton peeking through his torn skin. It was a bony, white face. A face she knew too well.

Sakura started screaming, trying to escape the half-Sasuke half-Orochimaru, but he was drawing nearer, his breath hot on her face and his long, skeletal fingers curling around her throat.

***

Sakura bolted upright in her bed screaming, trembling, and drenched in sweat. Wasting no time, she sprang to her feet, snatched up the knife she had stowed under her pillow and waved it around wildly. Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears. Where was Orochimaru? The snakes? And Sasuke, what happened to him? Did Orochimaru finally take his body for a host?

_CRASH!_

Right on cue, someone smashed through her bedroom window. But Sakura's nerves were on high alert. She was ready.

She caught a glimpse of a pair of Sharingan-lit eyes through the flying shards of glass and decided that whether it was Sasuke or Orochimaru in Sasuke's body, she wasn't taking any chances.

"Sakura -," Sasuke started, but Sakura's chakra-loaded fist got him square in the face before he could finish, sending him crashing into the opposite wall of her bedroom.

That was when a thought occurred to Sakura: Wasn't she just in a jail cell? When did she return to her bedroom? And her body felt a whole lot lighter, a whole lot  _younger_ than it did when she was pinned down by the snakes.

But she didn't have much time to ponder this because in a split second, a chain of events unfolded.

Sasuke crashing into the wall set off several of the booby traps he'd previously laid out in her room. "What the-," he started as a barrage of kunai pelted down from her ceiling, two of them lodging in his leg. He awkwardly rolled to the side while trying to support a bleeding nose, and narrowly avoided a net that was launched at him from its hiding place behind her desk.

Sakura stared, bewildered, at the scene before her, her eyes darting from her fist to the injured Sasuke on her bedroom floor. His nose was bleeding heavily despite his attempt to pinch it and stifle the blood flow. Two kunai were embedded deep in his left leg, and as he pulled himself up to his feet, she noticed that he was quite uncoordinated. He looked about as confused as she felt. "What the  _hell_ was that?" he growled and glaring at her through the darkness, his eyes narrowed with rage.

And now that she got a good look at him, Sakura noted that his skin wasn't peeling off his face at all. In fact, he bore no resemblance to Orochimaru. The older Sasuke wasn't here. And come to think of it, the older Sasuke didn't exist anymore.

_Oh. Whoops._

"A nightmare…," Sakura whispered, more to herself than to him, as it slowly dawned on her the mess she'd just created.

Sasuke looked murderous. "So, there's no one breaking into your room?" he asked through the hand clenched around his nose, his tone flat.

"No, I suppose not. Besides  _you_ , anyways."

He was livid now but Sakura didn't catch his angry retaliation because the voice of her father was rumbling down the hallway. "Sakura?! What on earth is going on in there?"

_Oh no._

Her eyes widened when her brain finally processed that her bedroom window was completely smashed, her parents had evidently just heard her screaming, and now Sasuke's blood was all over her bedroom floor. And, not to mention, he was still in the room.

This didn't look good.

"Get out!" she hissed at her teammate, his petrified look mirroring her own. She tossed him the first piece of fabric within arm's reach and shoved it to his face to staunch the bleeding while pushing him towards her window.

There was a loud knocking at her door. "Sakura? Are you in there?" cried a voice, this time the voice of her mother.

"Yes!" Sakura answered distractedly, just as Sasuke stumbled back out her window and disappeared into the night. While she spun back around, she absently noticed a bothersome pain in her feet. Glancing down, Sakura deduced that she'd tread on some shards of glass and  _– perfect!_  Her feet were bleeding all over the floor. Now the blood Sasuke left behind might pass as hers.

After quickly deactivating the traps around the door, unlocking it, and throwing the door open, Sakura greeted her worried parents with the brightest of smiles. "Hi!" she beamed, as if her bedroom didn't look like a crime scene.

Which it most certainly did.

"Sakura, what – "

"Don't worry about a thing, Mom. I can be a… a very active sleeper."

***

And that was how Sakura ended up hiding in her parents' garden in the dead of night, picking shards of glass out of her feet and healing the broken nose of her very unhappy teammate.

It took a while for Sakura to explain to her parents that she had kicked through the window in her sleep and she had a feeling they weren't entirely sold on her story. Her mother suggested she speak to a counselor about channeling her anger through healthier outlets and her father vented about how expensive fixing the window would be. But, all in all, they seemed relieved that their daughter was safe and that they could go back to bed.

Sakura would probably hear more about it in the morning, but until then, she was in the clear.

Once she was certain her parents were asleep, Sakura crept out to her yard where she detected Sasuke's chakra signature. He was sitting on the bench in her mother's flower garden next to a pair of bloody kunai, which Sakura presumed he had pulled out of his leg. He was using the soft material Sakura had thrust at him previously (which, Sakura realized with a pang of dread, was her favourite training dress) to stifle the bleeding in his leg.

They sat there in silence for a long while in the cool, dark garden as Sakura patched up their injuries. She was wearing a nightgown and a chilly breeze raised goosebumps across her exposed arms and legs. Ignoring her growing urge to shiver, she focused her energy on the medical chakra radiating from her hands. She only ventured to break the silence once Sasuke's nose was entirely healed.

"You didn't stick to the plan," Sakura said flatly without looking up from his leg and she was thankful to find that the kunai wounds were healing nicely. "We agreed that we'd start tracking down the stalker  _tomorrow_  night."

"I know that," he said, his voice equally monotone, but Sakura could tell he was biting back some kind of emotion (which she suspected was fury). "I was just surveilling the area."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "Surveilling the area?" she repeated and casting him a skeptical glance. "Is that how you normally spend your time in the middle of the night?"

"That doesn't concern you," Sasuke snapped and shooting her an angry glare, but she returned it, feeling her own anger stirring.

"You came crashing through my bedroom window!" she retorted, her voice rising. "Of course this concerns me!"

Sasuke was now running his fingers along the bridge of his freshly-healed nose, inspecting it for aches and pains. "So I was just supposed to leave you in there screaming?" he answered, and it annoyed her how he managed to keep his tone calm and collected. "Or would you have preferred I knocked on the window and asked for permission to save you from a potential attacker?"

Sakura gritted her teeth. It was hard to argue with someone with such good intentions. As angry as she was, her heart clenched at the thought of his stubborn persistence to protect her. It was far too much of a coincidence that he happened to be "surveilling" near her house in the middle of the night.

"Fine, I get it," Sakura grumbled, her frustration dissipating. "I'm just a little shaken up from the nightmare. Let's go back to the original plan tomorrow, all right?"

Sasuke rose to his feet, testing out his leg. "At your hospital shift tomorrow, gather as much information as possible for your end of the deal," he said, providing an indirect answer to her question. "We have a few more days left before our next mission. I would like to have your part taken care of by then."

Sakura nodded, thankful that Sasuke was addressing her breaking-into-the-hospital scheme in vague terms. It might be the middle of the night, but in the ninja world, you never knew who was listening. "All right," she said dismissively and also standing up. "I guess I'll be off to bed then." She paused. "I mean… the couch. I can't sleep in a room with a gaping hole in the wall, I suppose."

"You can't," he agreed, a little distractedly. He seemed to be in deep contemplation about something. "But you only have to make it through one more night. I'll tell you the details when you get off work tomorrow," he said.

"Let's make that after dinner," Sakura corrected, remembering that she had an important errand to run. "I have somewhere to be in the afternoon."

Sasuke cast her a suspicious glance before shrugging and walking away. "Whatever. Goodnight." He flash-stepped out of her garden and Sakura caught one fleeting glimpse of an Uchiha crest on a nearby rooftop before Sasuke disappeared from sight.

It was rather heart-wrenching to compare this Sasuke to the one in her nightmares. While Sakura had been healing his nose only moments prior, she couldn't help flinching at the sight of his face at such a proximity with images from her nightmare salient in her mind. That dream had been too vivid and too reminiscent of a darker life she had once lived.

And as she had placed her glowing, green hands on Sasuke's face to heal it, she'd half-expected his closed eyes to snap open and cast her a deranged stare, or for him to claw at her throat with long, skeletal fingers.

But he didn't. He  _wouldn't_. Because this Sasuke valued her life. And was willing to go far lengths to care for it.

Sakura picked up the pair of kunai and her blood-soaked dress before heading back to the house, using all her effort to clear her mind. Thinking about the Sasuke of the present was as much of a nightmare as thinking of the one in her past

Because she knew that if she failed to change the course of history, there would be no difference between them.

Source: wolf08, http://wolf08.tumblr.com/tagged/wolf08%20fan%20art


	14. First Date

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

"I know you're in there!" Sakura yelled at the locked wooden door before her. "Let me in, Ino!"

Sakura decided it was about time she made amends with her childhood friend. She was certain that the reasons for Ino's bitterness towards her were superficial and could be curbed if the two of them just sat down and talked things through, girl-to-girl.

After all, Sakura was clean out of medical herbs.

Given her natural aptitude for brewing medicinal ointments, Sakura realized that if she was to prove to her supervisors at the hospital that she deserved a promotion despite her age, this might be her best shot. But she wasn't going to get her hands on any of the supplies she needed without Ino's compliance.

"Let me in,  _Pig_!" she called at the Yamanaka Flower Shop door, the old nickname slipping out before she could stop herself.

 _Maybe she isn't here?_  Sakura wondered, but then a small, delicate hand appeared in the shop window.

The hand promptly flipped the  _Open_  sign around, revealing the words  _Closed_  instead.

_All right. Maybe that old nickname isn't helping my case._

"Look, Ino," Sakura said with a sigh, loudly enough that anyone inside could surely hear her, and resting her forehead against the door. "I know you're mad at me. I'm sorry. And if you don't want to talk about it now, that's fine. We don't have to."

Not a peep was made from within the shop.

Sakura gritted her teeth. She was growing frustrated but was stubbornly determined to have a proper interaction with the girl behind that door.

"In fact, let's not talk about it at all. There are way more important things to spend our time on, anyways," she fumed. It was true, after all. Ino's petty attempt to create drama was just going to slow down Sakura's progress and decrease her chances of completing her time travel mission. She needed those herbs. The entire village was at stake, damn it!

Then, to her surprise, the door unlocked with a soft  _click_. Sakura jumped back as the door was wrenched open, revealing a very annoyed-looking Ino. "Well, if you don't want to talk, what are you here for, Forehead?" she snapped, her blue eyes narrowing.

_Oh. Good question._

"I… um," Sakura mumbled while gazing down at her feet, feeling a blush creep across her cheeks. She started fiddling with the hem of her red shirt as she tried to formulate a believable lie.

_Wait. Shirt. That's it!_

"I need to go shopping," Sakura said and bravely meeting the platinum blonde's eyes. "My training dress is ruined."

Now  _that_  was entirely true. In fact, not only was Sakura's training dress soaked with Sasuke's blood, but she'd already thrown it out in a public dumpster to avoid explaining to her parents how it got to that state.

Ino cocked an eyebrow and rested her hands on her hips. "And why should  _I_  help  _you_?" she snarled, however, Sakura  _did_  notice her expression brighten slightly at the mention of shopping.

_Just one more little push…_

"Because you have better fashion sense than I do," she answered. "You always pick the best things for me and I was wondering if you could… help me out again," Sakura tried and putting on a hopeful smile. There was no doubt that Ino had an eye for fashion. For instance, Ino was the one who urged Sakura to stop hiding her larger-than-average forehead behind her bangs, and, in Sakura's previous life, it was Ino who suggested that Sakura invest in a sleeveless training outfit with a shorter, pink skirt.

 _Not only will this be easier to move around in_ , Ino had said all those years ago,  _but the colour just brings your entire outfit together._  And, as it turned out, she was right. Sakura had adored that skirt.

Ino averted her gaze, her face tinting a soft shade of pink. "Well, it's lucky you asked me now," she said and pursing her lips. "I was just closing up the shop for my lunch break. So I might have a few minutes to spare."

***

After visiting three clothes shops, Ino helped Sakura piece together a new training outfit. Both girls agreed not to deviate too far from Sakura's signature style, and so they picked out another red dress with a high collar to use as a base. But Ino noted that Sakura's signature look needed a couple of key upgrades.

"Your old dress simply wasn't practical," she said briskly, while rooting through racks of women's training gear. "The skirt was much too long and the sleeves were baggy. And it had absolutely no sex appeal!  _Honestly_ , Sakura. It's probably a good thing you went and ruined it." She shot Sakura a pointed look who rolled her eyes in return.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Pig," she said as a smirk graced her lips. As annoying as the teasing was, the return of her friend's characteristically sassy demeanor was refreshing.

And, Sakura had to admit, the final product she and Ino picked out looked pretty fantastic. The new, sleeveless dress was shorter than her old one, ending around mid-thigh, and split down either side as not to impede her movement on missions and so she could still pair it with her black spandex shorts. Sakura wasn't interested in any of the outfits that would expose her midriff, much to Ino's dismay, so they settled on a dress that included a thick, black band around the waist (which Sakura liked because it had pouches for storage and Ino liked because it accentuated her figure), and a white trim.

With some encouraging from Ino, Sakura invested in a few extra accessories that greatly resembled the ones she had in her old life: a pair of black gloves, black heeled boots, and a large pouch to fasten on the back of her black waistband and store medical supplies. She felt at home in her new boots, which were more like tall heeled sandals, because thanks to her personal training sessions with Tsunade, she'd learned to use high heels to her advantage in battle. And the gloves were custom made so that they didn't wear down with chakra concentration, keeping her hands soft and unscathed for medical procedures.

All in all, Sakura had a pleasant afternoon (and she was hopeful that Ino did too). By the end of their outing, Ino even opened up about her recent missions, some town gossip, and her annoying teammates. Not once was a certain teammate of Sakura's mentioned, she noticed, which prompted her to believe that maybe if Ino didn't  _see_ Sakura interacting with him, she would forget why she was ever angry with Sakura in the first place.

***

In the coming days, Sakura did a splendid job of minimizing her public interactions with Sasuke. They barely spoke to each other during the days, in fact, aside from the odd exchange during Team Seven's training sessions. And he didn't seem to mind. Sasuke was never one to initiate casual conversation anyways.

So surely no one, not even the ever-watchful Kakashi, would suspect that she'd been sleeping on the couch in Sasuke's flat.

"You might want to stop at your place to gather your things," Sasuke had commented two nights prior after an evening of training with Sakura.

"Things?" she had repeated between gulps of water while casting her teammate a curious glance.

"You're sleeping on my couch tonight."

Sakura rolled her eyes at the memory.

She had reluctantly complied with Sasuke's rather demanding request that she avoid her bedroom at night. The arrangement was only temporary, he explained, until they decided on the proper bait to lure out the predator and capture him once and for all. And it wasn't so bad, Sakura eventually reasoned, since she was always at his flat late into the night to plan their hospital break-in anyways.

Sasuke's flat was sparse and had a simple blueprint. There was a small sitting room on the left, an even smaller kitchen on the right, and a hallway leading to his bedroom, storage closet, and bathroom down the center. Sakura spent her time at the kitchen table or on his sitting room couch and didn't dare roam or touch anything without approval.

They quickly fell into a routine, where, after dinner, Sakura would pack her training gear after explaining to her parents that she was heading out for her extra-curricular training with Sasuke as she always did, slip away to the Uchiha residence, and just as it was getting close to bedtime (but after she was sure her parents were asleep), she would create a shadow clone and send it back home to sleep in her bed. And the plan was foolproof, really, since Sakura made sure she was awake at the crack of dawn each day and was home before Sasuke and her parents woke. That way, if her Shadow Clone jutsu broke while she slept, she would be home to replace it before its absence could rouse any suspicions.

Her sleeps at Sasuke's place were riddled with the odd nightmare, but none were as horrific as the nightmare that prompted Sasuke to crash through her bedroom window. Luckily, Sakura's parents paid for the replacement window and didn't seem to suspect Sasuke's involvement in it breaking. However, Sakura's mother was adamant that Sakura needed professional counselling for her sleeping problems. She was convinced that the extraneous ninja lifestyle was traumatizing Sakura out of a good night's sleep.

"They offer those services at the hospital. As an employee, I'm entitled to some free sessions," she said to appease her parents and keep them out of her hair. Because, honestly, as much as she would probably benefit from it, opening up to a counselor about the sources of her nightmares would probably land her in an asylum.

As far as her break-in planning was concerned, Sakura made use of her shifts at the hospital to collect data. She knew where the MRI machines were located, but the catch was that given her subordinate role, she wasn't supposed to be anywhere near them. On the day she decided to "get lost" in the radiology wing of the hospital, she tried to peek into a room with an MRI machine to gain her bearings…

But the door was slammed shut in her face. "What are you doing here?" asked a stern-looking lab technician who must have just finished up in the room Sakura wanted to snoop in. "You don't have authorization to be in this wing."

"N-nothing!" Sakura answered hurriedly and turning on her heel. "I'm just looking for my supervisor. Sorry!" she added over her shoulder before rounding the corner and striding away down an adjacent hallway.

 _Damn. That was close._ They were extremely strict about entering unauthorized areas, particularly with Sakura being on her three-month probation.

She had been hoping to check what model of MRI machine was currently used in Konoha's hospital. She would complete the procedure faster if she knew exactly how to use the machine before she got there, after all. But she lost her chance, so instead, she signed out every book on MRI machines from the hospital's medical reference library and studied them thoroughly.

"Why don't you just try to look in the room again?" Sasuke asked while setting down her mug of tea. She was so immersed in her reading that she jumped at the sound of his voice, having nearly forgotten that she was sitting at his kitchen table. "It would be nice to know if there are any windows in there for a quick escape if we get caught. And all of this studying seems a little… unnecessary." He cast her heaping piles of books a skeptical glance.

" _Because_ ," Sakura said exaggeratedly as she scribbled another point down in her notebook, "I can't risk losing their trust. If anyone at the hospital suspects I'm up to something, there's absolutely no way we'll get away with this." She finally tore her eyes away from the text to shoot him a serious look. " _You'll_ be the one operating the machine while I'm inside of it, you know. These detailed instructions are for you. So  _you're welcome_."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "Oh, right," he said. "Thank you for letting me risk my future career to help you break into the hospital for a reason you won't tell me." His expression was blank but the corners of his mouth twitched as he apparently resisted an urge to smirk.

"Hey!" Sakura exclaimed with a frown. "I'm holding up my end of the deal. So you're getting  _something_ out of this."

"I guess so," Sasuke said with a shrug. After a pause, he added, "But you still won't explain why we're doing this, will you?"

"No," she answered shortly and directing her attention back to the papers.  _Not yet, at least._

Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned away. "Well, I'm going to bed. See you," he said with a small sigh and running his fingers through his tousled, black hair.

"Right. Goodnight," she answered, but Sakura's eyes followed her teammate as he stalked down the hallway to his bedroom.

His interest in this arrangement was puzzling her. Instead of spending their nights at the training grounds (which was, without question, Sasuke's favourite place), he was willingly staying here at his flat, helping Sakura with a scheme he didn't even know the purpose of. All in exchange for… keeping Sakura under his watchful eye?

Now she was starting to wonder: What  _was_  he actually getting out of this?

***

Finally, the day arrived for the hospital break-in plan to be executed and Sakura was confident that they were as ready as could be. She and Sasuke had memorized a map of the hospital which identified where the video cameras and traps were set up (based on her recent scouting combined with memories from her previous life). Sakura had also trained Sasuke how to basically operate an MRI machine, which was a task he would be responsible for after she set it up and hopped inside of it.

That morning, during Team Seven's training session, Sakura couldn't quell the thoughts of the upcoming break-in. She felt a little guilty for breaking the rules in her own workplace. But, she reminded herself, these brain scans might hold life-altering secrets with direct implications for her time travel mission…

"Sakura-chan!"

A voice distracted her from her thoughts. "Yes, Naruto?" Sakura asked calmly and glancing up from where she stood against the rail of the bridge.

"Your clothes!" he said with bulging eyes. He looked her up and down without making any effort to hide his stare. "They're… they're sexy! I like them, Sakura-chan!"

"Oh," Sakura mumbled and feeling heat rise in her face. Today was the first day she'd tried on her new training outfit. Apparently Ino wasn't kidding that her old outfit needed upgrades in the sex appeal department. "Thanks, Naruto."

Sasuke, who was leaning on the rail opposite her, didn't seem to share Naruto's appreciation for her new clothes. "Looks impractical," he mumbled and eyeing her heeled boots skeptically.

"Only if you don't know what you're doing in them," she retorted while folding her arms.

And despite whatever Sasuke thought of her outfit, fourteen hours later when it was just about midnight, Sakura was striding alongside him down the dark streets of Konoha with the outfit on under a white lab coat. Her heels clicked softly against the solid ground beneath them.

"Would you keep it down?" he hissed. He glanced at her feet and was apparently quite annoyed with the sound they made.

"We aren't using stealth," Sakura reminded him. "I'm going to walk straight through the front door and let you in at the side entrance I told you about."

"I know," he mumbled but Sakura knew he was still disconcerted over her choice of footwear.

Sakura figured that breaking in at night would be their best bet. The hospital typically had less staff when it was late since regular checkups were held during the daytime. The only patients who needed tending to at night were those in long term care facilities or with critical injuries. So when Sakura let Sasuke in at the side entrance, she promptly stabbed him in the arm with a kunai.

He knew it was coming, but he still flinched with surprise. "I would have appreciated a warning before you did that," Sasuke growled through gritted teeth as she smeared his spilling blood all down his arm.

"Shh!" she said and dragging him into the hospital's maze of hallways. "You're my patient now." Sasuke reluctantly stumbled along after her, taking on his newly assigned role.

Sakura knew the only shot they had at getting into the heavily-guarded hospital was from the inside. And thankfully, the first part of Sasuke and Sakura's plan was executed flawlessly, thanks to their meticulous preparation and plenty of dumb luck. No one stopped them on their way to the radiology wing. In fact, the few who crossed their paths nodded or waved at Sakura or barely spared them a glance. Sasuke kept his head low as Sakura dragged him on through the halls, but Sakura knew his Sharingan were activated and keeping a sharp lookout for unwanted disturbances. And once they were safely locked in one of the rooms with an MRI machine, Sakura was relieved to find that the model of machine was one she had studied and could probably operate with her eyes closed.

They swiftly took action with Sasuke using his Sharingan to monitor the hallway for intruders and Sakura firing the machine up. She programmed it to send the scans of her brain directly to her personal electronic files. Then she had Sasuke explain to her what he was about to do before climbing into the white tube and lying flat on her back. She closed her eyes and the machine roared to life. She kept her eyes firmly shut as she was surrounded by echoing bangs and beeps until the machine fell silent several minutes later. Assuming Sasuke had followed all of her directions, their work was finished.

She climbed out and found that Sasuke was shifting his gaze between the controls and the door.

"I'm done," he said. "And there are a few people in the hallway, so let's wrap this up."

"That's fine," Sakura replied briskly. "I just have to erase the data before we go." And, once again, everything seemed to go smoothly. Sakura managed to strip all of their data from the machine's history after she sent herself the scans. Then she shut the machine down, switched off the lights, and when Sasuke gave her the go-ahead, pulled him back out into the hallway.

Piece of cake.

… Or so she thought.

They had only taken a few steps down the hall when Sakura noticed that Sasuke's arm, which still had her kunai embedded in it, was starting to drip blood onto the polished, white floor. She cursed under her breath, realizing that if she didn't mop it up, anyone who suspected that an MRI machine was used without authorization had an extremely obvious DNA sample to track her teammate down with.

Sakura made a quick detour to a nearby bathroom to grab some paper towels and soap before hurrying back to scrub the floor. Sasuke kept watch while attempting to staunch the bleeding with the white sleeve around his forearm.

Sakura barely had enough time to clean up any of the blood when Sasuke suddenly grabbed the back of the black band around Sakura's waist and gave it a yank. With a yelp of surprise, Sakura was forced to stumble backwards until her back slammed against the wall. Only then did Sasuke release the band and raise his uninjured arm in front of her, indicating that she needed to stay beside him.

But before she had a chance to express her confusion, voices and loud, hurried footsteps echoed from a short distance away. Moments later, a crowd of medical ninjas carrying a stretcher raced around the corner and into view. They dashed right past Sasuke and Sakura, trampling over the drops of blood Sakura had missed, and whisked who Sakura assumed was a traumatic brain injury patient, into one of the nearby rooms.

_That was close._

Sakura's heart was racing a mile a minute and her forehead was damp with sweat. They needed to get out of here. Sasuke was right: if they got caught, both of their future careers would be in jeopardy. And, not to mention, any hope of success in Sakura's time travel mission was at stake. If she got fired from the hospital, her chances of getting any real medical experience was impossible, and the village would never allow her to rise to a position of influence.

She exchanged a quick look with Sasuke, whose expression seemed to hold the same panic and resolve that she felt.

They booked it.

Sasuke and Sakura ran down the winding hallways, down a flight of stairs, past several surprised-looking people in white coats, back out the side entrance, and as far away from the hospital as their legs could carry them. Sakura reasoned that their work was done so there was no sense creeping around. As long as they avoided the security cameras and she used chakra to conceal the sound of her heels hitting the solid ground, the sooner they got out of there, the better.

"Keep going!" Sasuke called over his shoulder, his Sharingan activated, as they raced out the door and into the chilly, night air. As they sprinted through a clearing separating the hospital from the main road, Sakura kept in stride with her teammate, her adrenaline keeping her legs and arms pumping until the hospital was out of sight.

Finally, they rounded one last corner and emerged from an alley between two office buildings. They were back in the village core. Sakura doubled over to catch her breath and could hear that Sasuke too was breathing heavily. The dark road was deserted, aside from the odd couple stumbling home from a late night drinking at the local pub on their right. Sakura figured it was around one in the morning.

Once she composed herself, Sakura stripped off her white lab coat and slung it over her shoulder while Sasuke finally pulled the kunai out of his arm, splattering more of his blood onto the ground. "I'm not sure I liked that plan," Sasuke mumbled while wincing and eyeing his arm apprehensively.

"Let me heal that," Sakura replied curtly and beckoning for him to offer her his arm. Sasuke raised his eyebrows but obeyed her request nonetheless. She hooked her arm around his and started pulling him down the street, using the coat over her shoulder to conceal their intertwined arms and the green, glowing chakra in her hand.

The less attention drawn to them, the better.

"I can't believe we did that," she breathed after a moment of walking through the dark streets. She could feel the wound on Sasuke's arm close beneath her gloved fingers.

Sasuke snorted. "I'll say," he said. "At least it was interesting."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "Interesting?"

He shrugged. "The stealth was good training. And also a bit... enjoyable."

 _Enjoyable?!_  Sakura gaped at her teammate and the contentment written on his face. He chuckled when he caught sight of her dropped jaw.

_I suppose Sasuke always did have an affinity for breaking laws…_

"Well,  _I'm_ freaking out," she said.

"I can tell," Sasuke replied. After all, he could probably feel her racing pulse against his arm.

"Don't get your hopes up that we'll ever do that again," she huffed just as the scab on Sasuke's arm disappeared in her hand. But Sakura didn't release his arm just yet. She was feeling quite on-edge and holding onto him was steadying. Besides, they blended in with their surroundings better this way with there being so many intoxicated people nearby with their arms strewn around each other for support and… well, other things.

Sakura averted her gaze to the narrow path ahead of them which led into the Uchiha compound.

After a pause, Sasuke spoke again. "Maybe you're right," he said. "Next time it will be somewhere else."

Sakura opened her mouth and closed it again. " _Next time?_ " she repeated. Did he really think she regularly broke into places? Or was he just getting a kick out of making her panic? "Just where do you propose we go  _next time?_ "

"Next time for what?" said a new voice directly behind them.

The pair of them stopped dead in their tracks and a chill ran down Sakura's spine. She hadn't even sensed anyone there! When Sakura whirled around with surprise, she found herself face-to-face with none other than their silver-haired, masked sensei with his orange book in hand.

Kakashi looked unfazed, but Sakura knew too well that he was a master of disguising his emotions. Considering how he likely found her suspicious, catching her wandering the village in the middle of the night wasn't a good look.

Sasuke looked equally surprised as he stared at Kakashi in silence, clearly unsure how to respond. Sakura racked her brain for an excuse. Maybe she'd better unhook her arm from Sasuke's because that in itself looked a little strange…

Then she was struck with a crazy idea.

"We were on a date," she lied evenly. "Sorry for being out so late. I promise this won't interfere with our training," she added with a polite bow. She could hardly believe the words spilling out of her mouth. Sasuke tensed and Sakura didn't dare look in his direction.

Kakashi glanced up from his book with an expression of mild interest. "Really now?" he mused, his visible eye lazily shifting between his two students. "Well, I guess that explains a lot," he said, an amused expression appearing on his face. "Don't let me keep you. Sorry for interrupting."

"Y-you're not interrupting anything," Sakura said with a forced smile and feeling her face glow red with embarrassment.

But her sensei only smiled. "Have a good night, you two." He turned to leave, but then – "I have a book I could lend you if you need advice," he added with a twinkle in his eye before vanishing in a cloud of smoke, leaving Sasuke and Sakura alone on the dark path in complete silence.

When she was certain Kakashi was completely out of range, as casually as possible, Sakura untangled her arm from Sasuke's and stepped away from him. He mirrored the action. Then, hesitantly, Sakura continued along the path towards the Uchiha compound and Sasuke wordlessly followed suit.

Her head was spinning.  _What the hell just happened there?_  She couldn't  _believe_  she told Kakashi that they were on a date. Sasuke was probably pissed off beyond belief. But she figured that at least Kakashi would leave them alone now, right?

"Well this… complicates things."

Sakura snapped her head in her teammate's direction and found him staring determinedly ahead. She was a little surprised that he had broken the silence. "What do you mean?" she asked. "You know I was lying."

"I do," Sasuke agreed. His brows were furrowed with concentration. "But Kakashi doesn't trust you. And if he finds out you lied to him for being out at this hour, he'll trust you less."

Sakura stopped walking. Her heart sank. Because Sasuke's comment confirmed what she was dreading: Kakashi's negative sentiments towards her weren't in her imagination.

"Our team will suffer as a result," Sasuke continued with a sigh. "Kakashi won't want you going on high ranked missions which will hold all of us back."

"Well, what do we do now?" she asked as it dawned on her the huge mistake she made.

Sasuke clenched his jaw. "I don't think we have a choice."


	15. Regeneration

There was something fishy going on. Something very fishy indeed.

As they did every morning, Team Seven arrived at their designated meeting spot – a bridge near the training grounds – before starting their exercises for the day. And, as usual, Kakashi was the last to show up. In the meantime, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura leaned against the bridge rails, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes and counting down the minutes until their sensei graced them all with his presence.

So there was nothing out of the ordinary there. But… once Kakashi  _did_ arrive, the strange behaviour his two teammates exhibited did not go unnoticed by Naruto Uzumaki, the most perceptive ninja in the Hidden Leaf Village.

If he did say so himself.

"Good morning," Kakashi said with a lazy wave. "Sorry I'm late. A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way." Naruto folded his arms and scrunched up his face in concentration. That was the exact same excuse his sensei gave the team yesterday. How was it there were so many black cats in the village, anyways?

"Liar," Sakura said with a sigh, impatiently running her fingers down the length of her pink, shoulder-length hair.

Wait. Liar? Why, maybe she was right!

"Yeah, we're onto you! Believe it!" Naruto chimed in enthusiastically while raising a threatening finger at his sensei.

But Kakashi only chuckled in response. "Have a good night you guys?" he asked with a smile. And was that… a wink? In Sasuke in Sakura's direction on the opposite rail? Yes, that was definitely a wink. And by the way his two teammates shifted uncomfortably and shot each other knowing looks, Naruto just knew something was going on. Did they have a secret mission together and forget to invite him along?

"We had a great night," Sakura said with a shaky smile and inching closer to Sasuke, who was nodding wordlessly at her side. And then she… Oh God, this couldn't be happening. Sakura reached out and grabbed Sasuke's hand. But that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was that Sasuke didn't push her hand aside or flinch away. He was letting her lace her fingers with his like it was no big deal! There was clearly something wrong with Sasuke today. With both of them. With  _all_ of them.

Naruto couldn't help feeling angry. Why was everyone acting like they knew something that he didn't? Why wasn't anyone holding  _his_ hand? He would get to the bottom of this mystery if it was the last thing he did.

"All right team, time to get down to business," Kakashi then said. He straightened up and pulled slips of paper out of his weapon pouch. "So this may come as a surprise to you guys, but I've put your names down for the Chūnin Selection Exams."

Naruto blinked at his sensei with surprise. "You… you aren't serious," he said, his mind racing.  _Does Kakashi-sensei really think I could be a Chūnin?_

Kakashi raised his eyebrows and made a face that probably meant,  _I am very serious, idiot._

And so Naruto's celebratory cheering commenced. This was absolutely perfect! If he was a Chūnin, that would make him only two ranks below the Hokage.  _And_  he'd make more money on his missions so  _he_ could treat Iruka-sensei to ramen! Well… not that he would refuse Iruka's offers to pay, but still…

His thoughts were interrupted by the gut-wrenching sound of someone puking.

Naruto's head snapped up with surprise and he noticed that Sakura was now crouched in the forest outskirts beside the bridge, seemingly retching into the bushes. Gosh, he hadn't even seen her run over there. And why was she sick so suddenly, anyways? "Hey, Sakura-chan!" he started and running over to where she was heaving. But Sasuke beat him to it.

"What's wrong with you?" Sasuke demanded and standing over their female teammate with his arms folded. Despite his blunt question, he looked pretty worried.

"Upset stomach?" chimed in Kakashi and joining his students. Sakura nodded without sparing him a glance. She was trembling all over and from the angle Naruto stood, her face looked extremely pale.

"You should go home, Sakura-chan," Naruto said firmly while Sasuke kneeled down beside her, gesturing to help her up. "Maybe you caught something at the hospital."

"Naruto's right," said Kakashi with a nod. "In fact, you can all go home if you'd like. I want you to mull over whether you think you are truly ready to take part in the exams." He closed his orange book dismissively and was about to leave when he added, "Sasuke, take good care of Sakura. See you all tomorrow." And then he vanished in a cloud of smoke.

Sasuke?  _Sasuke_ take care of Sakura? What about Naruto? "Hey, I'm here too!" Naruto yelled but Kakashi was already gone. "I'll do a better job taking care of her than that bastard. Believe it."

"No, I-I'm fine guys," came Sakura's shaky voice as she used Sasuke's arm to pull herself up to her feet. "Something came over me suddenly and I… I don't think we're ready for the exams."

"What?" Naruto and Sasuke said in unison. Now that was unexpected.

Sakura was now standing in an upright position with hunched shoulders. "I know what's involved in them. We aren't ready. Just… promise me you guys won't go ahead and register without me. Take your time thinking it through." She wiped her mouth on the back of her trembling hand.

Naruto and Sasuke exchanged glances. Where the hell was this coming from? Sakura was one of the toughest Genin out there, and if anyone could pass the Chūnin Exams, she could. Heck, she'd even stood up to Zabuza the Demon! Naruto bit back his urge to shout some sense into her when he caught the pleading look in her eye. Something told him now was not the time for protesting.

"We'll... think it through," Sasuke said slowly but he sounded a little unsure of himself. Of course Sasuke wanted to enter the exams. He whined about the D-Ranked missions they went on too, and the exams would be a perfect opportunity to face new, challenging opponents.

"We can register together when you're ready, Sakura-chan. We'll figure this out when you're feeling better," said Naruto with a firm nod. He too wanted to take the exams, but he also realized that openly disobeying Sakura was dangerous.

Much to his relief, Sakura broke into a smile. "You guys are the best," she said while patting her teammates' arms affectionately. "Well, since training is cancelled, I'll go home and take a nap before work. See you guys." And then she picked up her backpack and turned to leave.

"I'll see you later," Sasuke called after her at which Naruto narrowed his eyes. There was something deliberate about the way Sasuke was speaking, like this wasn't just a casual goodbye. Naruto's suspicion was confirmed when Sakura turned back and shot Sasuke a small smirk.

They were meeting up later? Something was  _definitely_  going on with those two.

Since Team Seven's battle with Zabuza, Naruto had been haunted by a powerful guilt for accidentally hurting Sakura. In all honesty, he couldn't clearly remember striking her, but when he registered that her unconscious body was crumpled on the ground before him, and his fist was outstretched in her direction, it didn't take much thinking to put two and two together.

And what happened after that was perhaps the worst part of all.

Kakashi freed himself from Zabuza and immediately restrained Naruto by pinning him to the ground like he was some uncaged, vicious animal. And Sasuke was yelling at him then. Yelling something in a tone filled with fury, grief, and the tiniest trace of fear. And it genuinely upset Naruto that he managed to create such a negative emotional response in his own teammate.

Naruto was lucky Sakura forgave him when she woke up in the hospital. He really wasn't expecting her to. But he still had a nagging feeling that his teammates didn't feel safe around him. He knew they looked down on him. He knew they snuck out at night together. And he was sure Sakura had a thing for that stuck-up bastard like all the other girls did even though she didn't really show it.

It was about time he put an end to feeling so out of the loop. He needed to get closer with his teammates if he was ever going to understand them. It was time to man up and take initiative.

"Oi, Sasuke!" Naruto called after the Uchiha just before he turned to leave the bridge. The others were already long gone.

Sasuke glanced back and raised his eyebrows, prompting his teammate to get to the point.

"Let's spar."

After a brief pause, Sasuke turned back around. "Right now?" he asked flatly, but Naruto didn't fail to catch the energized glint in his eye.

"Yeah," Naruto said, a mischievous grin sprouting on his face. This was perfect. After all, he knew the best way to get to know someone better was to beat the shit out of them.

***

And beat the shit out of Sasuke he did. Well, maybe for a couple of rounds. But who was really counting? Either way, Naruto had a great time.

The two agreed to leave out ninjutsu and focus on hand-to-hand combat, aside from Naruto's shadow clones (which Sasuke claimed might actually make the fight worthwhile). The two of them roughed it out for nearly three hours at which point they were both exhausted, covered in dirt, and supporting several cuts and bruises.

"That was great," Naruto said between heavy breaths while wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. "Much more fun than tree climbing," he added while recalling the only other time he and Sasuke had an opportunity to train alone together.

"Yeah," Sasuke said from where he was crouched with his hands resting on his thighs. "You're a little smarter than I thought."

"Hey!" Naruto shot back, but he was too tired to think up a comeback so instead he just laughed. He'd definitely get Sasuke back later with some witty line anyways.

Sasuke smirked and shook his head before rising to his feet and slinging his bag over his shoulder. "Well, I'd better get going," he said.

"Where to?" Naruto asked as nonchalantly as he could, his curiosity spiking a little. If the rest of Team Seven was having a secret meeting, there was no way Naruto would risk being left out of it this time

Sasuke cast his blonde teammate a perplexed look. "Home, I guess," he said, clearly having no idea why Naruto was taking any interest in his personal life.

Naruto straightened up. "You hungry?"

***

Naruto had to admit: he felt pretty cool walking around the village and stopping to grab a bite with the famous Sasuke Uchiha. It made him look cooler. See, it was almost like doing charity work to help one of the most antisocial jerks mingle in the village like a normal human being.

He was rather surprised that Sasuke agreed to join him for lunch at all. But while they were walking to Ichiraku (where Naruto insisted they went), Sasuke admitted that he disliked cooking, and then it occurred to Naruto that Sasuke was living on his own too. And Naruto knew, from first-hand experience, that growing up without a family could get a little boring. There wasn't really anything to do at home besides cook and clean (and Naruto refused to do either) unless you picked up some stationary hobbies. But even then the days without school or training could drag on forever.

Not to mention, despite his coolness and charm, Naruto never had any good friends growing up. And he was certain that Sasuke never had any either.

After taking their seats at the ramen bar, they started recounting the events of their recent taijutsu training session before the conversation shifted to the upcoming Chūnin Exams. "I'm pretty pumped," Naruto said while flexing his arm and grinning enthusiastically. "I'll finally get a chance to move up in the ranks and say goodbye to those lame D-Ranked missions."

Sasuke nodded. "And we'll face real opponents in the exams," he said between sips of water. "Since the Land of Waves mission we haven't had any real fights."

"And we weren't even supposed to go on that mission in the first place." But his attention was quickly averted when a steaming bowl of ramen was set down before him. "Yes, finally!" he exclaimed and reaching for his chopsticks. It felt like ages since he last tasted ramen. Well, ramen from a restaurant, that is. He had a bowl of instant ramen that morning. In fact, the last time he ate out was with Sakura, and that was  _at least_  a few days ago. Which, now that Naruto thought about it, ended up being a lunch with that quiet girl from the Hyūga clan, Hinata. She turned out to be a pretty nice girl. Sure she wasn't very talkative, but she was one of the first people he'd ever spoken to who didn't cringe once in their whole conversation.

After a few minutes of wolfing down the salty, pork-topped noodles, Naruto seemed to remember why he wanted to spend more time with Sasuke in the first place. He was here to gather information on the strange relationship between his teammates.

"Right, Chūnin Exams," Naruto continued through a full mouth. "I wonder why Sakura-chan doesn't seem interested in them."

Sasuke shrugged. "I don't know," he said between bites.

"Well how about we sign her up for the exams in secret?" Naruto asked with a sneaky grin. "I bet she'd thank us in the long run."

Sasuke glanced at his teammate disbelievingly. "She'd kill us," he said simply. "And besides, I'm pretty sure that's against the rules."

"That's never stopped me from doing anything," Naruto said and waving down the waiter to order another bowl. "I could easily forge her signature. And besides, don't you think Sakura-chan will regret it if she doesn't take the exams?"

For a moment, Sasuke looked like he was considering Naruto's comment. But then he seemed to have a change of heart and said, "That's not our problem."

Naruto frowned. Really? That was all he had to say? Well, maybe it was time to take a different approach to bringing her into the conversation.

"I mean,  _Sakura-chan_ of all people has nothing to worry about in the exams, right? She's gotta be the strongest and smartest girl I've ever met," he gushed. "She always knows exactly what to do in battle. And I mean, how many Genin know how to use medical ninjutsu? None! She's such a genius," Naruto said while smiling fondly. As if he landed the coolest kunoichi on his team. "So, Sasuke. What do  _you_  think about Sakura-chan?" he then asked as casually as possible between slurps.  _Damn, am I ever smooth,_ he thought _._ Maybe if his plan to be Hokage didn't work out (which wouldn't be the case, but still), he could be an interrogator or an undercover detective.

There was a short pause. "I agree with what you just said," Sasuke mumbled while keeping his eyes trained on his bowl and chewing slowly and deliberately.

 _Seriously?_  Naruto frowned. "And that's  _all_ you think of her?" Naruto asked and trying to keep his tone as relaxed as possible.

Sasuke's suspicious gaze drifted to his teammate. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted before he even got any words out.

"Hey is that you, Naruto? And… Sasuke? Is that Sasuke?" said a new voice.

Darn, what awful timing. Sasuke was totally about to cave. Who was… Oh! Shikamaru and Chōji! "Come over here, guys!" Naruto called. He sprang up to his feet and beckoned for the two boys from Team Ten to join them.

Naruto sensed his own teammate's discomfort as the other boys approached but he chose to ignore it. He was doing Sasuke a service by forcing him to improve his social skills.

"Hey boys," Shikamaru said in his usual laid-back tone. His eyes were heavy-lidded like he'd just woken from a nap, and his long, chestnut hair was tied up as it usually was. "Must say I'm surprised to see you out and about, Sasuke," he added while easing himself into the empty chair beside Naruto. Sasuke merely shrugged in response.

"You guys think they'll let me order three servings at once?" asked Chōji while he plopped himself down on Shikamaru's other side. "I'm starving! And by the time I finish my first bowl, the waiter never comes by fast enough for me to order the next one in time."

"It's worth a shot," Naruto said with a grin. He liked the way that guy thought. But now it was time to get back on topic. He wasn't going to let the new-arrivals distract him from the true reason he was out here with Sasuke in the first place. Maybe they could even help get some details out of the stubborn bastard.

But, of course, he needed to work the topic into the conversation smoothly.

"So guys," Naruto tried in a cool, relaxed tone. "We were just talking about what's going on between Sasuke and Sakura-chan."

That was pretty smooth. Right?

"Oh, so you  _are_ dating then?" Shikamaru asked and lazily glancing up from the menu. "Ino asked me the other day. I told her no one cares and then she had a fit. Crazy woman."

Wait.  _Dating?_  Sasuke and Sakura? No. No way. That simply wasn't possible.

Naruto gave his teammate a scrutinizing glare, but Sasuke was still staring straight at his bowl as he fished around intently for the last couple of bites.

Chōji and Shikamaru's bowls were set down then, but Naruto wasn't going to let this subject of conversation die so easily. "That's not true, is it?" Naruto asked slowly, the wheels turning in his head. Now that he thought about it, hand-holding was something that couples did, wasn't it? And spending a lot of time alone together.

_Oh God._

That was when Sasuke, calmly, set down his chopsticks and rose from his seat. "Good lunch," he said, ignoring Naruto's question. "See you later." Without waiting for anyone to reply, he placed a wad of money on the counter and stalked out of Ichiraku, leaving a shocked and confused Naruto behind.

"Hey! Wait Sasuke!" Naruto called after his teammate, but he was interrupted by Shikamaru tugging on the sleeve of his orange jacket.

"Leave him, Naruto. You're just going to piss him off," Shikamaru said. "Besides, I think the answer to your question is pretty obvious now."

Naruto whirled around to face the other boys. "What do you mean obvious? I don't see it. There isn't enough evidence to prove they're dating. So I'm gonna go beat the truth out of that bastard!"

Naruto was angry now. Why were his teammates hiding so much from him? And why wasn't Sasuke answering any of his questions? This was the last straw.

"Easy there," Shikamaru sighed. Chōji, who was just finishing up his third bowl, appeared oblivious to the entire exchange. "Why don't you just talk to Sakura instead? She seems a whole lot easier to reason with."

Talk to Sakura? Why, that was a brilliant idea! She was certainly more approachable than Sasuke was. See, this was why Naruto needed to keep smart guys like Shikamaru around.

"Okay, we'll talk to Sakura-chan this evening," Naruto announced and pounding his fist on the table for good measure.

Shikamaru raised his eyebrows. "Wait… what do you mean  _we_?"

***

After dinner, Naruto showed up at Shikmaru's front door and dragged him outside. There was  _no way_ he would let the guy back out now. They made a fabulous team, after all, with Shikamaru being the brains and Naruto being the muscle.

"I never agreed to this," the lazy boy groaned as Naruto pulled him through the darkening streets. The sun was beginning to set now, casting long shadows across the village roads.

"Oh come  _on_ ," Naruto whined. "This is going to be fun. Trust me."

Shikamaru sighed. "That's doubtful. But if I back out now you'll never let me have any peace and quiet, will you?"

Naruto grinned. "Exactly!" he said. "Wait, hold on. I think that's her!" They rounded a corner onto Sakura's street just when said kunoichi walked out her front door. She was certainly dressed for the warm summer evening, with a red, sleeveless shirt and grey cropped pants on. Her head protector and weapon pouch were no where in sight, which suggested that she wasn't heading to the training grounds. So the enormous backpack she was slinging on her shoulders caught Naruto's attention.

If she wasn't training, why did she need such a big backpack? And where  _was_  Sakura going anyways? The library? The hospital?

"Well, that's a relief," Shikamaru said when he caught sight of Naruto's pink-haired teammate. "Let's go talk to her now so I can go home."

"No. I have a better idea," Naruto said as he pulled Shikamaru back around the corner they'd just emerged from. "We're going to follow her and find out what she's up to." He popped his head around the building he was pressed up against to track Sakura's movements. She was now looking over her shoulders.  _Oh,_  how suspicious!

_She's up to something! I know it!_

"What a pain," Shikamaru mumbled and scratching the back of his neck. "Well, she's already getting away, so you'd better hurry up."

Naruto startled and leaped out onto Sakura's street. Gone? Already? Crap. She was nowhere in sight. He whirled around, searching for any sign of pink. That was when he was wrenched back by the collar of his jacket.

"She took the rooftops, idiot. Come on," Shikamaru said, his voice dripping with annoyance, before he channeled chakra to his feet and launched himself into the air, dragging Naruto along with him.

***

This couldn't be happening. This could _not_ be happening.

Sakura was going to the Uchiha residence.

Naruto stared in horror, from behind the chimney of a nearby building, as his female teammate approached the front door to what he assumed was Sasuke's place, knocked twice, and silently slipped inside when the door was opened for her.

He gritted his teeth. This whole thing wasn't sitting right with Naruto. His crush on Sakura aside, Naruto  _hated_ losing to his arch-nemesis. As much as he had a good time hanging out with Sasuke that day and how Sasuke might be less of an asshole than he originally thought, there was no way in hell he deserved to be with someone like Sakura.

That was when a thought occurred to Naruto – one that carried such enormous implications that he even emitted a gasp.

Sasuke was forcing Sakura to date him against her will.

That  _must_ be it. After all, Sasuke was a socially awkward jerk who  _definitely_ didn't have the charm, skill, brains, or looks to keep a girl around.

 _Okay, maybe he has_ some  _looks. But Sakura-chan isn't that shallow!_

Naruto pounded his fist against his open palm before gunning it towards Sasuke's apartment with an unstoppable resolve, his chakra flaring dangerously.

He ignored Shikamaru's cries of protest because now was not the time for reasoning or logic. It was time to rescue Sakura.

***

So when Naruto burst through Sasuke's front door, he was quite surprised to find Sakura sitting comfortably in what appeared to be a dimly-lit kitchen. Until she caught sight of Naruto, that is.

Sakura bolted upright so abruptly that she nearly knocked the chair out from under her. "Naruto?" she squeaked with surprise. "What the hell are you doing here?"

And before Naruto could even open his mouth to answer, Sasuke flashed-stepped directly before him, from wherever he had been lurking in the shadows of the kitchen. With his arms folded and his jaw clenched, he asked, very quietly and calmly, "What do you want?" There was something intimidating about his soft tone and his dark, narrowed eyes.

Oh, but Naruto wasn't backing down.

"I'm here to save Sakura-chan from you, if you'd excuse me," Naruto snapped in the most threatening voice he could muster up and raising his arms to shove Sasuke aside. But a hand on his shoulder stopped him. And it wasn't Sasuke's.

"Naruto, cut it out," Shikamaru said tiredly from behind him. "Guys, I'm sorry for walking in on you like this. Naruto just wanted to prove a point and, well… yeah, you know how it is with him."

"W-what?" Sakura stammered from where she stood by the kitchen table. "You didn't walk in on anything!" Her green eyes were wide and her hands were clasped against her stomach.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. He wasn't going to believe that one bit. She was clearly hiding something. "Then why are you blushing?" he asked. "And stuttering?"

God damn, Naruto amazed himself with how suave and analytical he was sometimes.

"And why is there a picture of a human brain on the table behind you?" Shikamaru then asked, a trace of curiosity finding its way into his voice. He was nodding towards the kitchen table, which, Naruto noticed, Sakura seemed to be trying to shield from view.

"Yeah, what's with the brains?" Naruto demanded. "That's the first thing I noticed when I walked in here. Believe it!"

That was when Sakura and Sasuke exchanged wide-eyed looks.  _Aha._  They were busted  _now_  for…

Wait, if this was some secret romantic meeting they were crashing, why were there pictures of brains on the table anyways?

"All right," Sakura said after a long pause. "I can explain."

***

Shortly after, Naruto found himself seated at Sasuke's kitchen table before a pile of textbooks and a small stack of brain scans. He couldn't help but appreciate how three of Konoha's most intelligent Genin were now sitting around the same table.

Oh, and Sasuke was there too. Under normal circumstances, Naruto would whine about how said Uchiha was lowering the room's overall IQ level. But Sasuke was currently putting on a pot of tea for all of them. So for now, he was in Naruto's good books.

"So let me get this straight," said Shikamaru while closing his eyes and rubbing his temples in concentration. "You found something unusual in one of your patient's brain scans so you took them home to conduct your own personal research?"

Sakura tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and bit her lip. "You guys have to promise not to say anything about this," she said a little hurriedly. "Technically this… this is illegal."

Shikamaru nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever," he said with a shrug. "Well, I must say that these scans do strike me as a little weird."

Naruto scrunched up his face in concentration as he peered down at the images. They all looked like ugly, wrinkly balls, if you asked him. Here and there, spots on the brains appeared darker or lighter than others, but the images were grey-scaled so other than that, they all looked pretty much the same.

But maybe if he focused really hard he'd figure out what was weird about them.

Then something clanked down onto the table directly in front of Naruto, breaking his concentration.

"Hey, wha-!" Naruto yelled in frustration. It was hard enough for him to concentrate on those boring, wrinkly balls without any distractions.

"Your tea, dumbass," Sasuke grumbled. He rolled his eyes at his teammate's dramatic startle response before taking the seat across from Naruto on Sakura's left.

"Right. Thanks," Naruto grumbled back, his tone not sounding the least bit thankful. "So this patient must be pretty special huh?" he asked the room at large. "So what's up with his brain?"

Sakura sat up straighter and cleared her throat. "Okay. Well, the patient is around our age and –"

"Hold on a sec," Shikamaru interrupted and picking up one of the scans. "Our age, you say? A few parts of this brain look more mature than that," he mused. "So either this patient is actually older and has some sort of neurodegenerative disease, or this patient really is our age, and his brain's development is being accelerated in certain areas at an unnatural pace."

Naruto peered from the scan to Shikamaru and nodded. Shit, he had absolutely no idea what the guy was talking about. But that didn't mean he couldn't act like he did. Naruto glanced up to find that Sasuke's eyes were flickering from Shikamaru to Sakura with an expression of utter confusion.

_Okay good. At least I'm not the only lost one._

"E-exactly," Sakura said, her voice catching slightly. "And I think that… well, I think  _these_ particular scans here will provide some explanation," she said while nodding towards the scans closest to her

"Ah, chakra scans," Shikamaru said while raising his eyebrows. "What's so interesting about them?"

"Well," Sakura started and dragging one of the scans to the middle of the table so that everyone could see it. "Have a look at this dorsal view and tell me what you guys think."

"A huge amount of chakra is gathered in the middle," Sasuke said while frowning at the birds-eye scan. "Isn't chakra normally more evenly distributed throughout a ninja's brain?"

Sakura nodded. "You're right," she said. "Now if you compare this brain scan to the one we just looked at, you'll notice that the areas with the strongest concentrations of chakra also appear to have aged the most."

"Show me the ventral and sagittal chakra scans," Shikamaru chimed in and nodding towards the pile. "They should give us a closer look at the regions aging faster."

"Sure." Sakura reached for two more sheets in the pile. Her fingers were trembling slightly, Naruto noticed.  _Probably because she was sick this morning,_ he thought. Being the busy-body she was, Naruto doubted Sakura napped after training like she said she would.

Everyone stared at the images in silence. Chakra was clumped around several different areas in the middle of the brain scans, but that was all Naruto could really make of them. He peered up at the other three who all appeared to be in deep contemplation.

All right, he could do that too. But that damn ticking clock was distracting him and so was his burnt tongue. The stupid tea was too hot.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Shikamaru broke the silence.

"All right, so if we want to get specific, that chakra is surrounding the limbic system, especially the hippocampus and amygdala," he said in a casual tone, as if people talked about such things in any normal conversation.

"What are those parts responsible for?" Sasuke asked and glancing up curiously.

Sakura jumped in. "Well… they're multi-functional, really. But if we focus on basic roles, they control emotions and memory." She paused for a moment. "So it seems the chakra is causing those areas to mature faster than all the others," Sakura added quietly while staring down at the images with wide eyes.

"I see…," Sasuke answered slowly, his eyes trained on her. "But why would the chakra be concentrated like that in the first place? We've studied how chakra should naturally behave in the body. So this isn't normal chakra, is it?"

Shikamaru shook his head. "No, I suspect not," he said. "In fact, if you ask me, I think this chakra has regenerative properties."

"It has  _what_ properties?" Naruto piped up. He was trying so very hard to keep up. But it wasn't easy. He never paid attention in his Academy classes, so how would he know about brain chakra or whatever?

 _And_ he was getting hungry so his attention span was weakening with each passing second.

"Regenerative properties," Shikamaru repeated. "You know, sort of like healing properties. It looks like that chakra is regenerating and enhancing parts of the brain." He chuckled to himself in amazement. "I think I've read about this chakra somewhere in a modern history book. There was some famous healer who cultivated her chakra to do this. What was her name again? Senju? Darn, the name is slipping my mind…"

"…Tsunade Senju," Sasuke finished so quietly that he practically breathed it, his eyes widening with what appeared to be realization.

Sakura's own jaw dropped and the pencil she'd been balancing between her fingers dropped to the table.

What just got into everyone? They were all acting like they'd make some humongous discovery and Naruto barely knew what was going on at all. Tsunade Senju? Who the hell was that? There was no way he remembered anything from his modern history classes. They were so boring that he'd never been awake for more than ten consecutive minutes in any of them.

Anger bubbled in him then. Why was it that he always felt left out?

Naruto glowered at his black-haired teammate across the table who was staring at Sakura like he'd never seen her before, with his mouth hanging open and his eyes wide and unblinking. Naruto was certain he knew  _exactly_  what that look on his face meant too. Sasuke was in  _love_ with her.

Not only that, but Sakura was also staring at  _him_  with equal intensity, like she was trying to tell him something through her big, green eyes.

So Shikamaru was right after all, Naruto reasoned and much to his disapproval.  _They_ are  _dating._

And even worse than that, everyone was discovering cool things in these brain images without him, acting like they were all so smart. Well, they  _weren't_ smarter than him! Naruto knew that he could find something interesting about the brains too.

"Hey guys, look!" he called while pointing at a scan viewing the brain from the front. "Did any of you notice how the brain chakra behind the forehead is making the shape of a diamond?"

But, much to Naruto's infuriation, no one responded. They all just turned and stared at him.

"Weird huh?" he added with a small chuckle.

Source: wolf08, http://wolf08.tumblr.com/day/2016/03/22


	16. Unraveling

Sakura sat up with a lurch to find herself in complete darkness.

Her heart pounded as she blinked around through the pitch black, trying to gauge her surroundings. Where the hell was she?

Just then a blinding flash lit up the room followed by a thunder clap that reverberated through the wooden floorboards beneath her feet. She jumped with surprise only to calm down slightly when she caught sight of several familiar pieces of furniture, now illuminated by the lightning flash.

_Ah. Okay, I know this place._

Apparently Sakura had fallen asleep hunched over Sasuke's wooden kitchen table amidst a stack of medical textbooks and brain scans. And she couldn't help feeling a tinge of embarrassment at the predicament. This was the first time she'd fallen asleep anywhere other than Sasuke's couch, and she was quite adamant on sticking to her non-invasive, nearly invisible routine. Sakura was aware that changes were likely to irritate her cold, sensitive teammate, so she tried her hardest to follow a rigid schedule and stay out of his hair.

Not that she even wanted to be staying here in the first place. But that was another matter. Honestly, she was just relieved to find herself somewhere far away from her world of nightmares.

Sakura's mind had graced her with a series of treacherous memories made fresh by recent news of the upcoming Chūnin Selection Exams – the event that marked her previous life's downward spiral.

She was plagued by thoughts of Orochimaru's infiltration of the exams, specifically, the moment he inflicted his curse mark on Sasuke.

Sakura hugged her cotton pyjama-clad arms and squeezed her eyes closed, trying to ignore the image of Orochimaru's scaly, white neck contorting and stretching like a snake, lunging towards her, and finding its target on Sasuke's neck, where sharp fangs plunged, and…

"What?"

A voice interrupted Sakura's train of thought. Startled, she fumbled around for the weapon pouch she normally had fastened to her thigh only to find that she wasn't wearing it. But then she registered just whose voice it was.

"Sasuke?" she gasped and spinning towards the hallway leading to the flat owner's bedroom. And there, sure enough, Sasuke stood at the opening of dark hallway wearing grey sweats and a black shirt and rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

 _Crap._  What was he doing up?

It felt strange to encounter him outside of their usual routine. After bidding each other goodnight, Sakura usually continued reading at the kitchen table until she made her way to the couch to sleep. In the mornings, she was always long gone before Sasuke woke and never saw him again until later that day at training. She had grown used to pretending Sasuke wasn't there once he left for his room.

Sakura gaped at him and became aware of the hair pressed to her face and the drool smeared on her chin.

But Sasuke didn't seem to notice. "You called me," he mumbled while scratching the back of his head and blinking through the darkness in her general direction. "What is it?"

Called him? "No I didn't," she snapped while wiping her chin on the back of her hand.

But maybe, just  _maybe_ , there was a  _tiny,_ not-so-improbable chance that Sakura said his name in her sleep. Her nightmare had been about him, after all.

Her face flooded with colour when it occurred to her just how loudly she must have said his name if her cry woke him up.

Sasuke merely cocked an eyebrow in response. "Why aren't you on the couch?" he asked, ignoring her comment and nodding to the living room across the hall.

"I… I was just about to go there," she stammered and rising to her feet. "Everything is fine. I'm… I'm fine."

 _This is_ so  _awkward_.

She scuttled on past him, feeling Sasuke's eyes keenly trained on her, and approached the couch to prepare it to sleep on.

 _Act natural, Sakura,_ she told herself firmly as she fluffed up the pillows and felt around for a blanket. It was a little unnerving how Sasuke was now leaning in the living room doorway with his arms folded, watching her every move with a skeptical look plastered on his face. What was he waiting for, anyways? Did he think she was up to something? Why didn't he just go back to bed? She was  _completely_  fine.

Then another thunder clap resounded. Sakura jumped a foot in the air and emitted a shrill squeak.

She peered nervously at her teammate who, to her disappointment, was now smirking and shaking his head.

"I'm fine. Really," she repeated while averting her gaze and curling herself up on one side of the couch. The curtains on the floor-length window were ajar, revealing the first of the rain drops pounding on the windowpane.

That was when the cushions below Sakura dipped slightly. She whipped her head around to find that Sasuke had eased onto the other side of the couch. She straightened up with surprise and pulled the blanket more tightly to her chest. She'd spent so much time alone on this couch that she'd nearly forgotten that it  _was_ Sasuke's and that he technically had every right to sit on it when he pleased.

That said, Sasuke had never taken an interest in sitting on it with her.

Sakura was certain that he'd been treating her differently since they looked over her brain scans with Shikamaru and Naruto the previous evening. She noticed the way his eyes darted to her forehead unusually frequently last night. Even after the other boys left, Sasuke had hovered nearer to her than he usually did, and he even offered to make food for her when her stomach growled while she perused her heap of textbooks.

It was a little unnerving how fascinated he seemed by her now that he knew of her hidden abilities. What did he think she was – a shiny new toy? A weapon to polish?

He didn't understand the pain this was putting her through. Sakura's life was ruined. The time travel mission was now impossible.

Of course, Sasuke was the only person besides herself who was aware that those brain scans belonged to her. But, if what she'd deduced from them was true, the two of them wouldn't be the only ones to know the truth for much longer.

It seemed that some of the regenerative chakra she'd been building up in her former life had survived the trip across time dimensions, and that this very chakra was speeding up her current brain's development. But what exactly was it doing to her brain?

The evidence pointed towards one possible conclusion: Sakura was about to unlock the Strength of a Hundred seal – a jutsu designed by Tsunade Senju, her former mentor, herself. As the name suggests, the jutsu taps into a monstrous chakra-enhanced reserve of physical strength, but that's not even the best part. It also gives the user an opportunity to master a regenerative and self-enhancing medical ninjutsu called Creation Rebirth – a technique that makes the user virtually indestructible (assuming they don't run out of chakra or overuse these powers).

Under normal circumstances, Sakura would be ecstatic. For three years she'd trained tirelessly to build up her chakra and one day unlock this skill. And, as Tsunade had promised her, once she finally unlocked it, she would be the second medical ninja in Konoha's history granted full access to the frontline of any battle.

But there was a catch. The Strength of a Hundred technique bears a permanent mark on its wielder. And it's not exactly an easy mark to miss: a dark, purple diamond smack dab in the middle of the user's forehead.

Oh, how unprecedented that would be if a home-grown, fresh-out-of-the-Academy ninja went around bearing the mark of a Legendary Sanin – a mark indicating that Sakura had mastered the techniques of a woman who she had apparently never met.

Her connection to Tsunade would be made as clear as day. And she had absolutely no idea how she would talk her way around it. Would she be accused of stealing the technique? Of being a spy? A reincarnation of some sort? And what about when she actually  _met_ Tsunade? How the hell would she explain herself  _then_?

Sakura sighed with frustration and rubbed her temples. What was she to do?

Another bright bolt of lightning branched across the sky, pulling Sakura from her thoughts. She blinked and realized that she'd been staring dazedly at her teammate and immediately wrenched her head away.

Sasuke stirred, noticing her abrupt movement. "You aren't going to be sick again, are you?" he asked seriously and tilting his head to face her.

Sick? Really? That's what he thought this was about? "No, I'm not sick," she answered quickly and watching the trees sway in the shadows outside.

Sasuke leaned back into the couch, making no motion to get up and return to bed. "Good," he said. "I don't want you puking on my couch." After a pause, he added, "What was that about yesterday morning, anyways?" He too was watching the storm now, the flashes of light dancing across his dark eyes. "You weren't actually sick because of food, were you?"

_Damn. He's good._

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know," she lied dismissively, but he was persistent.

"I also doubt you don't find yourself capable of entering the Chūnin Exams." He didn't say anything more, deliberately prompting her to answer.

She sighed. "Okay. You're right," she said, nervously nibbling on her lower lip. "Something happened yesterday morning. Before I met you all at the bridge."

"What happened?" Sasuke asked. He was watching her intently.

Ignoring her heartbeat echoing in her ears, she recounted the events of the previous morning.

"A week or two before the First Exam, the participants from other villages usually start showing up to register and get settled in. And that's exactly what's happening now. There are all sorts of powerful and unusual characters prowling around Konoha as we speak."

At this, Sasuke turned towards the window as if an enemy might appear. "I thought I noticed strange chakra signatures throughout the day," he said thoughtfully.

"Yes, well… I ran into a ninja from the Sound Village yesterday who, um… caught my interest. So I followed him," Sakura said, closing her eyes and wincing at the memory.

Sakura took a rooftop shortcut to training the previous morning, and only moments into her trek, she detected a foreign yet familiar chakra signature. She followed her senses, biting back her growing feelings of dread, and soon spotted none other than Zaku from the Sound Village.

A tremor ran through Sakura's body at the sight. That morning it hadn't occurred to her just how fast-approaching the Chūnin Exams were. And seeing Zaku here on Konoha turf was among the starkest reminders she could have received.

 _Zaku_  of all people, the tall, merciless foe with wind tunnels in his palms, had pummelled Sakura to a bloody mess the last time she'd seen him. In the Chūnin Selection Exams of her former life, in fact, it was Team Seven's face off with Zaku's team that was the first time Sasuke had succumbed to Orochimaru's newly-inflicted curse. He had totally lost himself, dismantling Zaku's arms with strength lent to him by the wicked snake, and Sakura even had to physically restrain her teammate before he went on to beating Zaku's entire team to death.

"You followed him?" Sasuke repeated with interest, impelling her to carry on with her story.

"Yeah," she said, nodding. "I followed him to where his three-man team was training in a secluded area of the village. I stayed a safe distance away and watched them for a while… But then I got hit by one of his teammate's long-range techniques."

"So you're hurt?"

"I'm fine now," she said. "His teammate didn't attack me directly. If he'd hit me head-on it would have been a different story. This Sound ninja, Dosu, can manipulate sound waves. I just got caught in the cross-fire and it made me sick."

Thanks to a quick anti-nausea medical ninjutsu, Sakura had managed the trip to the training grounds. But at Kakashi's reminder that the Chūnin Exams were indeed just around the corner, Sakura's emotional turmoil broke right through the ninjutsu in the form of vomit.

Sakura flushed at the memory.  _How's that for your great world saviour, Tsunade-sama?_ She thought with stab of humiliation while balling her trembling hands into fists.

"You still aren't feeling well," Sasuke determined. "You should sleep." And then, as Sasuke often did when he didn't know what else to say, he stood up and motioned to leave. Just before he turned down the hallway leading to his room, he added, "Wandering around the village alone probably isn't a good idea now. You never know who could be out there."

Sakura's heart started to pound. He had a point. All of the twisted enemies from her past would be arriving in the village at any moment.

Kabuto. Gaara. Orochimaru…

There was no way in hell Sakura was getting any sleep tonight.

***

Sakura was on her way to the library.

After hours of sleepless turmoil, she'd finally reached the conclusion that she would not do this alone. She  _could not_ do this alone.

It was time to be realistic. Just because Sakura had special insights into the events that were soon to take place, it didn't mean she had to deal with all of their accompanying problems by herself. She was physically and mentally incapable of doing so. Even with a "super brain" or whatever Naruto called it, she was still only human.

So, with that driving thought in mind, the following day, Sakura decided that she would skip out on training with Team Seven to gather evidence that justified the Sound Village being disqualified from the Chūnin Selection Exams.

Now, her first impulse had been to go directly to the Hokage Tower and plead with the village's high council. But it didn't take long for the more rational side of her to recognize how stupid that would be. See, if Sakura went straight to the Hokage Tower with claims of an impending war without any proof, firstly, no one would believe her, and secondly, it would likely sound like  _she_ was the one trying to rouse conflict between seemingly allied nations. She had no authority to make such claims. Heck, she wouldn't be the least bit surprised if she were tossed in jail or a psych ward in response.

Sakura settled on a trip to the library instead because, first and foremost, she needed to collect information on the Sound Village's corrupted political structure. If the Leaf Village's high council was presented with tangible evidence of what went on within Sound's boarders, surely the nature of their alliance would shift for the worse. So if everything fell into place just how Sakura hoped it would, Leaf would revoke Sound's invitation to participate in the exams. Then, without Sound's support, Sand would call off the attack on Leaf, and the exams would ensue without issue.

Sakura grimaced.

 _This plan sounded a whole lot better at two in the morning,_ she thought, but onward she strode because it was the only plan she had.

***

Of course, it was just Sakura's luck that every single book on the Sound Village were checked out at the library.

She even made a detour to the hospital's small collection of reference books, where she recalled encountering a book on the Sound Village's health policies once, only to find that it was also nowhere in sight.

Sakura gritted her teeth and approached the clerk perched behind the small desk near the library exit. "Excuse me," Sakura said, and forcing a calm facade. "Could you please tell me who has checked out, er…" She quickly glanced down at the note she scrawled from the library directory. "…'A Guide to Otogakure Healthcare Policy'?"

The woman frowned and pushed her thick-rimmed glasses further up the bridge of her long nose. "Just a moment," she said while reaching for a hefty black binder. After a few minutes of thumbing through the pages and scanning list after list of hand-written notes, she said, "Ah, yes. Nara, Shikaku. He checked it out a month ago. In fact, it's well past its due date..." She clicked her tongue and reached for a coloured pen while muttering something that sounded an awful lot like, "I must have a word with him  _again_."

But Sakura hardly noticed.

The culprit's surname was Nara. It was a relative of Shikamaru's, likely his father.

"Thanks," she said hurriedly and circling back towards the hospital entrance.

_Now I've gotta find Shikamaru._

Sakura hadn't intended for this to become a scavenger hunt, but if that's what it took for her to get her hands on that book, so be it. The book  _must_ make reference to any of the major ethical violations that took place in that corrupted village, from genetic experimentation to infanticide… And with the right amount of evidence, Sakura planned to compile a list of reasons to conduct an investigation of the Sound Village, and hopefully they would find at least  _something_ fishy about –

A bone-chilling scream interrupted her thoughts.

Immediately, Sakura's medical ninja instincts roused, and her feet carried her through the hospital hallways towards the source of the voice.

She came to an abrupt halt in the entrance of the Emergency wing, where a young boy was being cradled in a man's arms. And that was just about all Sakura could process of the situation beside all of the  _blood_.

Litres of blood were spilling onto the floor and staining the boy's leg. And like a bee to honey, Sakura raced onto the scene.

She beckoned for the man to set the boy down onto the ground as she reached for the leg of the boy's pants to inspect his injury, only to find that his foot was gone.

_That explains a lot._

Mechanistically, Sakura took action right there in the hallway of the Emergency wing. She tore the black band from her waist and fastened it to the boy's calf as a tourniquet in attempt to slow the bloodflow. Then she reached into her medical bag, which was now splayed on the floor, and pulled out a small container of pills. "Painkillers," she said quickly, while tossing the container to the man, who she presumed was a relative of the boy's based on how he was holding back tears and clearly experiencing emotional distress. "Give him half a pill."

The man nodded fervently and did as Sakura instructed. Despite Sakura's lack of medical attire, she seemed to carry enough of an authoritative demeanor for the man to trust her. And he also seemed ready to do just about anything to save the bleeding boy cradled in his arms.

The procedure went smoothly. Given Sakura's experience tending to grave injuries on battlefields with nothing but her own two hands, this was right in her element. It took her only twenty minutes (about ten minutes longer than it would have in her old life) to remove the dead cells, stop the bleeding, send a pulse of soothing chakra through the damaged nerves, and create a protective coating around the stump where his missing foot should be. And, as she'd rehearsed on countless occasions, she managed to engage the man in a light-hearted chat while she was casting her ninjutsu on the boy, who was losing consciousness.

She learned that the man was indeed the kid's father, and that the boy was an Academy student and aspiring ninja. "This won't have to be a setback," Sakura offered gently as she unwrapped her waistband from the boy's leg. "This hospital has the greatest prosthetic limb research lab across the five great nations. He will need intensive rehabilitation but I have high hopes for his recovery."

"You mean that?" the man said in awe, and clutching the unconscious boy more tightly against him. "It's just… It's all my fault – I shouldn't have let him near the training grounds without me. I was careless." And with that, the man took a shuddering breath that Sakura recognized as an attempt to stifle a sob.

Her body responded instinctively. Grabbing his hand and looking the man dead in the eye, she said in a strong, unwavering voice, "Sir, I promise you that your son will have as good a shot as he always did at being a ninja. Even without a foot, if he sets his mind to it, he can do anything, and we will support him every step of the way. He's a lucky kid to have such a responsive father who knew to take him straight to the hospital. You managed to get him here just in time." She patted the back of the man's hand affectionately and stood up. "Now, even though the wound is healed, I recommend you have a nurse clean his leg properly. We don't want him getting an infection."

The man was staring at her now with wide, glossy eyes. "I will. Thank you," he said softly. Sakura nodded in response, preparing to turn away from the scene, but she was held in place by a shuffling sound behind her.

She turned around and found a large crowd standing there, including several nurses holding out a stretcher, surgeons, doctors, her supervisor Ayame, receptionists, and other patients who had been in the waiting room. They all appeared to be rather stunned.

"Hello," Sakura said, a little awkwardly, and realizing how odd it must seem for the fresh-out-of-the-Academy intern to have performed an advanced medical procedure in the middle of the hallway. "Um," she said, while turning back to the man on the ground. "Looks like there are plenty of nurses for you to ask right here." She let out a small, nervous chuckle to break the heavy silence. "Well, I have to get going. Take care." Finally, she turned towards the exit.

"Wait! Doctor!" the man called after her from where he was crouched on the ground. "Doctor! Can I get your name?"

Her response came naturally. "I'm Sakura Haruno. But some of my patients call me the Pink Medic."

She turned away again, and this time she really did exit the hospital, leaving a hoard of flabbergasted medical personnel behind her.

_Now. Time to find Shikamaru._

***

Shikamaru… Shikamaru… Where on earth would she find him, anyways?

Sakura hadn't the slightest idea where he lived or if Team Ten was on a mission today. And besides the library (which she had already thoroughly explored), she wasn't sure where the brainiest ninja in her year might spend his spare moments.

Well, she needn't waste her time on an impossible search. Instead, she would look for someone who might know of his whereabouts. Someone who spent a lot of time with Shikamaru and who would be much easier to locate.

It didn't take long for Sakura to think of just who this  _someone_ would be.

After about fifteen minutes of wandering the village road most heavily lined with shops, Sakura's heart leapt at the sight of the very blonde-haired kunoichi she was trying to find. "Ino!" she cried at the top of her lungs before she could think better of it. "I'm so happy to see you!"

Ino, who had been twirling a strand of her long hair around a finger and gazing into a shop window, side-eyed the incoming voice. Sakura wasn't entirely certain what the status of their ever-unstable friendship was at the moment. It was only a matter of time before Sakura's loud-mouth teammate blabbed his theories of Sasuke and Sakura's supposed relationship to anyone who would listen, and Ino had quite an ear for gossip.

But this wasn't the time for such trifling matters. Sakura had a life-or-death mission to fulfill and she wasn't going to let one of Ino's jealous, dramatic hissy fits get in her way. "Ino, listen," Sakura said through bated breaths as she neared said blonde. "Do you have any idea where I might find Shikamaru?"

"Forehead," Ino responded flatly. "Why are you asking  _me_?" Sakura caught a note of dismissiveness in her tone and cringed with annoyance.

Resisting a strong urge to raise her voice, Sakura took a deep breath and said, "Since you're his teammate, I figured you might have an idea."

But Ino's icy, blue eyes only narrowed. "It's just favour after favour with you, isn't it, Forehead?" she sneered. "And now, if my sources are correct, you and your dunce of a teammate are trying to spread a rumour that you're dating Sasuke. Tell me, Sakura: why should  _I_ help  _you_?"

_Well this is just great._

There really couldn't be a more inconvenient time for drama to stir up. Sakura didn't have time for this. The village and the  _ninja world_  didn't have time for this. "Ino, I'm serious. I need to find Shikamaru. This is urgent," Sakura pleaded while staring intently at her friend and clasping her hands together. "I promise I didn't start any rumours."

To her disappointment, however, Ino merely rolled her eyes, her rosy lips curling into sneer. "I don't owe you a damn thing, Sakura. You know what all the girls have been talking about these days? Your new outfit. And  _who_  picked it out for you? Me!  _Who_  gave you a shot at a social life when we were kids? Me! And now you've got the nerve to parade around claiming that the boy who  _everyone_  is after would give you a chance? You're delusional, Forehead! Delusional and  _pathetic_."

Sakura opened her mouth and closed it again while her chest tightened with an emotion she couldn't quite place.

She'd forgotten just how nasty she and Ino had been to each other in their early teenage years.

But they'd moved on. They made up and rekindled their friendship so that it was stronger than it had ever been.

Well, in her past life, that is.

When they'd grown older, the pair of them wouldn't dream of letting a boy come between their friendship. Ino helped Sakura get back on her feet after Sasuke left the village. She welcomed Sakura onto her three-man squad the second time they participated in the Chūnin Selection Exams, and, side by side, they advanced in rank. It was Ino who took Sakura out for a drink after a traumatic or particularly stressful day at work. Or after a mission. Or to celebrate a promotion. Or just to catch up.

All right, so they went for drinks a lot (a side-effect of having Tsunade for a mentor, Sakura figured).

God, how Sakura missed her old friend. Her old experiences. Her old life.

_What I would give to go back…_

It was in moments like this, when it felt like her world was about to collapse, that Sakura craved a moment with someone who she could confide in, someone who truly understood her, who could keep her in check and give her advice. In this life, she didn't have anyone even remotely close to the kind of confidant she needed.

Well, except for one person, but she wasn't so sure he counted.

Right on cue, someone roughly tapped Sakura on the shoulder. It was more of a jab, really.

She snapped her head around, her reflexes on high alert, only for her jaw to nearly hit the dirt road when she discovered who it was.

"Sasuke-kun?!" Ino squealed from somewhere behind her, but Sakura ignored the ear-piercing sound.

"What do you want?" Sakura snarled, her eyes narrowing. Sasuke was fully clad in his ninja gear and must have just finished up at the training grounds with Naruto and Kakashi. He towered over Sakura with his dark eyes narrowed.

And he really couldn't have picked a  _worse_ time to show up. Things weren't exactly going as planned with Ino, but any hope of patching up their problems was lost now that the very cause of their argument decided to show up in the flesh.

Sasuke chose to ignore her question. "Where have you been?" he growled back while folding his arms. He wore what appeared to be an impassively cool expression that Sakura had come to recognize as a mask for inner rage.

"Why does that matter, Sasuke-kun?" Ino butt in with a flirtatious giggle, and attempting to push her way closer to the object of her desire. Her eyelids were fluttering unnaturally frequently, and her face was tinted a pale shade of pink.

But then, to Ino's surprise, Sakura nodded. "Yeah. Why does it matter where I've been?" she answered coldly.

Anger flashed across the Uchiha's face. "You didn't show up at training. I didn't know where you were," he deadpanned with a glare.

Sakura felt Ino freeze beside her.  _This isn't good._

Despite his aggressive tone, Sasuke wasn't making that fake dating scheme seem like just a rumour. And, of course, this exchange just  _had_ to be happening right in front of the third loudest ninja in the entire village (after Naruto and arguably Kiba).

"I-I have my reasons," Sakura said, her confidence wavering.

"Why don't you tell that to Kakashi, then?" he said dismissively and grabbing Sakura's arm.

She winced with surprise, and opened her mouth to retort when a new voice inquired, "Tell me what?"

Sakura spun around, and surely enough, there stood her masked sensei.

Sakura really couldn't believe her horrible luck. She was in a rush now, with the Chūnin Selection Exams fast approaching, and of course today of all days everyone was choosing to make horribly-timed interruptions.

"Oh, I…," Sakura started and glancing at her sensei unsurely. She still didn't quite have her head around Sasuke's recent appearance. "I wanted to… to apologize…"

Crap, now she was stuttering and sounded suspicious.

In truth, she was nervous.

Sakura couldn't afford for Kakashi to catch her in any more suspicious scenarios. "I wanted to apologize for missing training this morning," Sakura clarified while bravely looking up at her sensei and fighting the colour rising in her face. "There was an emergency at the hospital."

_And if he doubts me, I have witnesses to back me up._

Kakashi seemed unfazed. "That's fine," he said with a small shrug, his hands in his pockets. "I'm glad you're practicing your medical ninjutsu." Sakura was midway through a sigh of relief when he added, "But I would like to have a word with you."

Her stomach did a summersault. A word? About what?

"Miss Yamanaka," Kakashi said and turning towards Ino, who was unusually quiet. Her face was twisted into a rather bitter expression. "If you don't mind, I would like to speak to my students privately."

After a pause, she nodded and shot Sakura one last glare before turning on her heel and stalking off. "Bye, Ino," Sakura called after her but she was blatantly ignored.

Well this was just lovely. Sakura didn't have time for this – for  _any_ of this. What did it matter if Kakashi was angry, anyways? When the war started, it would be the last thing on any of their minds. She needed to focus on her mission. She needed to research the Sound Village. Approach the Hokage with some credible evidence. Keep Orochimaru out of the village.

"So, have you two eaten lunch?" Kakashi asked and glancing up from the orange book he had apparently pulled out of his weapon pouch while Sakura's mind was racing. Sasuke and Sakura shook their heads in unison. "Good. Come with me."

Without warning, he leaped onto a nearby roof.

In a flash, she and Sasuke tailed him as he bounded from rooftop to rooftop through the damp, post-storm air. As irrelevant as following Kakashi around at a time like this might be, he'd managed to pique Sakura's curiosity. Her sensei often made reference to skipping meals when they were about to engage in a particularly strenuous exercise, like the bell test.

Despite everything that just happened, she was relieved that Kakashi was including Sasuke in this too. It meant he probably wasn't trying to corner her. Sakura figured he was leading them to the training grounds so that they could spar while he assessed the extent of her abilities.

So when Kakashi hopped down onto one of the streets near the village outskirts, Sakura was quite surprised. It appeared he had led them to some sort of old residential complex on a road lined with ramshackle houses in need of some serious maintenance.

Kakashi glanced at his students over his shoulder. "Have you been to this spot?" he asked.

"No," Sakura answered, but then she noticed a large sign in her peripheral vision, which suggested that the building immediately in front of them was, in fact, a restaurant.

_Oh no. He doesn't mean…_

"Perfect," he said with a dismissive nod. "I know the owner of this place. Just go on in and tell her you're my students. She'll give you lunch on the house."

Sakura gaped at her sensei in disbelief. This had nothing to do with training at all. Kakashi, who was clearly still under the impression that she and Sasuke were in some kind of relationship, was setting them up for a date.

Now  _this_ she didn't have time for.

Sakura glanced at her teammate for support, but to her horror, found him removing his head protector. "All right," he said with a shrug.

***

And that was how Sakura winded up spending her afternoon on a date with the love of her life.

A date she would do just about anything to get away from.

"Come on. He's gone," she pleaded for the umpteenth time. "We can leave now."

"We both know Kakashi could be anywhere," Sasuke answered between sips of water. "And I don't see what difference this makes. We both needed lunch."

Sakura ogled at him with disbelief.  _He_ was trying to rationalize the date.  _Sasuke_ was! With a pang of frustration, she realized what a tragedy her life was. She'd spent years pining after this guy. If an opportunity like this came up at any other point in her life, when she was in a proper state of mind and didn't have the weight of the world on her shoulders, she would have been all over him.

But, of course, that wasn't how things played out.

"You're not eating." Sasuke's voice interrupted her thoughts. She blinked a few times and finally noticed the aroma of the lunch that was set down on their table while Sakura was lost in her thoughts.

"Oh. Right," she said while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and reaching for her chopsticks.

Sasuke lowered his. Sakura could feel his eyes trained on her now, but she stared intently at her food. "You weren't attacked today, were you?" he asked in a hushed tone while leaning forward and placing a hand on the table between them.

"No," she answered sharply. "What makes you think that?"

"There's something wrong with you."

His steady tone was laden with some sort of emotion that Sakura couldn't quite put her finger on. Pity? Concern? Sakura peered up at her teammate's face and met his expectant glare.

Did he want an explanation for her mood? A play-by-play of her day?

_Just who does he think he is?_

Surely Sakura would freak him out if she admitted the things that weighed on her mind. They were training partners and good friends and he already knew too much about her life.

She needed to distract him – to convince him that everything was okay.

So Sakura put on her brightest of smiles and reached out to place her hand over Sasuke's. His fingers felt cold against hers. "I'm fine. Please don't worry about me," she lied and forcing some light-heartedness into her tone. "It was a hard day at the hospital. A boy almost bled out and I'm not used to the life-or-death stuff."

Sakura deliberately skipped a few blinks to dry her eyes out and fill her tear ducts with some moisture.

Perfect.

Sasuke was glancing between their hands and her tear-filled eyes with a blank expression plastered on his face.

Then he broke out into a smirk, his face relaxing. "I call bullshit," he said a little amusedly and giving her hand a squeeze. "Try again."

_Crap. This would be so much easier if I was having lunch with Naruto._

And to make matters worse, Sakura felt a blush creep across her cheeks, possibly because Sasuke just called her bluff, and possibly because he was still holding onto her hand with an incredibly triumphant (and attractive) smile.

_Damn it._

So, what now? Tell him the truth?

No, that definitely wasn't an option. She needed to get out of here. She would explain that she was feeling sick again or something.

But just when Sakura was about to open her mouth to respond, a voice on her left caught her attention.

"Pink. That's her right?"

Sasuke seemed to notice it too because his smile vanished and his head snapped around towards the voice, all while his grip on Sakura's hand tightened.

Two unfamiliar chakra presences were approaching, and Sakura was on her feet before she got a proper look at them, dragging Sasuke up beside her. Sakura blinked at the strangers with confusion, trying to gauge who the tall, cloaked men were.

"You're Sakura Haruno?" the taller man on the right asked calmly. He wasn't making any motion to threaten her or to entice a battle, but Sakura knew better than to let her guard down around unfamiliar ninjas.

"Can I help you?" she said unwaveringly while squaring her shoulders. She noticed Sasuke's free hand hovering over the weapon pouch on his thigh.

"Excellent," said the shorter of the two men, while clapping his hands together dismissively. "We'll need you to come with us now." He cast Sasuke a quick glance. "It would probably be best if your boyfriend didn't follow us," he added with a broad smile. "Someone's got to pay for the lunch, after all."

The cheeriness in his tone wasn't sitting right with Sakura. "And where, exactly, are you planning to take me?" Sakura asked then, her hand instinctively balling into a fist and charging up with chakra.

"The Hokage Tower," he answered, "for an interrogation."


	17. On One Condition

Sakura was the kind of person who had a natural aversion to getting in trouble.

She was the type to show up at least fifteen minutes early for everything, she respected her elders, and her personal goal in life was to heal people and improve their quality of life. Besides that one time she skipped taijutsu lessons to study for an upcoming history test, she was a perfect, straight-A student who hadn't broken a single rule in all of her Academy years.

The most deviant thing she'd ever done in her entire life, in fact, was love and chase after an S-ranked criminal. But even then, she chased him only because she believed there had to be some good left in him, somewhere.

So, needless to say, it was a little out of character for Sakura to wind up in prison.

Seated on a tall, metal chair, she found herself in one of the village's interrogation rooms with her arms shackled around the back of the chair and her calves strapped to its legs with tight rubber bands. The room was dark, aside from the dim, yellowish light trickling in from under the closed door on her left, which illuminated the array of torture devices lining the walls.

As promised, the two cloaked men had escorted her to the Hokage Tower, but upon their arrival, took a detour down a tunnel connected to the village's prison. In all honesty, Sakura was too shocked to process how nervous she ought to be in a circumstance like this. She couldn't afford to be interrogated! Not now that a war was just around the corner. They simply  _couldn't_ find out the truth about her time travel mission at a time like this. She didn't know how she'd cope with the repercussions, let alone predict what they would be.

Just then, the large wooden door creaked open. She squinted towards the opening as the light poured in, trying to determine if her interrogator had arrived.

It seemed he had. The door slammed shut, soon followed by a glaring white light being flicked on and angled directly at Sakura's face. She winced and blinked into the brightness, trying to make out the silhouette of the person before her, who was easing himself down into a chair on the other side of the light.

"Sorry about the restraints," said a distantly familiar, male voice while she blindly scanned her surroundings. "It's protocol."

Her eyes finally started to adjust a little and she glimpsed long, blonde hair. The man spoke again. "Ibiki Morino is the head of Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Force, as you might be aware. But today he has other matters to attend to. So instead, I, Inoichi Yamanaka, am here in his place to have a little chat with you."

 _That's_  how she recognized the voice. Yamanaka – this man was Ino's father! Sakura had never been particularly close to Mr. Yamanaka, but she certainly knew of him, given the years she'd spent playing in his yard and having slumber parties with his daughter. But they had never had a proper conversation.

At first, Sakura felt a surge of relief at the sight of his familiar, blue eyes. Even though he was likely required to detach himself from all personal connections to his subjects, Inoichi said they were going to have a "little chat," didn't he? That was surely a better alternative than whatever torture devices the famously militant Ibiki would have used.

But then Sakura recalled the bloodline trait that the Yamanaka clan was known for: mind manipulation. And all her calm thoughts drained away in a flash.

"All right, Sakura," Inoichi said while rubbing his chin and assessing a document on the wooden table in front of him. It was still quite difficult for Sakura to make out the details of his face through the piercing light. "I collected the results from the finger prints, blood test, saliva sample, and chakra scans you did on your way in. And everything seems to match up just fine…" His voice trailed away and by the sound of the flipping papers, Sakura presumed he was reviewing her test results once more.

All of those tests had been a blur to Sakura, really. At the time, her mind had been reeling through all the possible reasons why she would be interrogated in the first place. The first thought that came to mind was the hospital break-in; the night that she and Sasuke snuck into the unauthorized wing to use an MRI machine and scan her brain. Did she accidentally leave some sort of DNA sample behind? If anything, she was worried that Sasuke would end up getting caught, given the blood his arm had dripped onto the floor. Or were they caught by a security camera as they booked it out of there?

Sakura just  _knew_  they had been reckless by sprinting straight past the other hospital workers. That in itself had  _sketchy_  written all over it.

Or, in a worst-case-scenario, did someone find the time travel scroll, currently disguised as a pair of red underwear? She'd been staying over at Sasuke's place every night for the past week, leaving her bedroom completely unattended, aside from the traps her teammate laid out. Could someone have taken advantage of her absence and done a little snooping in her drawers?

"Yes, so, your test results match up with your medical records. Although your chakra reserves appear to have grown…  _exponentially_ , your chakra  _signature_  is consistent enough. Now we can move on to the questioning." Sakura heard the papers ruffle once again. "All right, Sakura. You were born of civilian parents with no exceptional inherited skill in chakra control, correct?"

"Yes," she answered with a nod.

"It states in your file that you haven't a single relative with a ninja status. Now, can you please tell me what drew you to the ninja arts in the first place, particularly the medical arts?"

Sakura swallowed hard, suddenly feeling uncoordinated from the intensity of the light.

It would be safe for her to answer this question honestly… wouldn't it?

"Well… well at first, I begged my parents to enroll me for the Academy because all my friends were going. I didn't have many skills when I started out, but I studied hard. And it turned out I had a natural aptitude for chakra control.

"But I still wasn't like my friends. I didn't have a special bloodline trait or physical strength. One day I got tired of feeling so… incompetent, so I decided to pick up a new hobby on the side. I knew I had the memory and work ethic for it."

Her mind carried her back to when she approached Tsunade and asked to be taken under her wing. She'd been so frustrated after the years of trailing behind her teammates, of being protected, of feeling utterly useless, of watching them get hurt and sacrifice themselves for her. It was then she had realized that there  _was_ a way she could help her friends. If she wasn't capable of mastering offensive powers, then she would direct her attention elsewhere, and so her passion for healing was born.

As it happened, Tsunade had some particularly powerful offensive skills to pass onto her apprentice too.

"Right then," said Inoichi while jotting something down into his notes. "Do you have any affiliation with Lady Tsunade Senju, the Legendary Sanin?"

_Oh._

For a fleeting moment of sheer panic, Sakura wondered if Inoichi was reading her mind. He couldn't be, could he? Sakura didn't know the extent of the Yamanaka clan's mind control techniques, but maybe, just to be on the safe side, she would try filtering her thoughts, or even shutting them out entirely.

"She's my inspiration," Sakura said, using all her effort to keep her voice from wavering. "I've studied her techniques thoroughly and I hope to be half as influential as she is one day."

And that was the absolute truth. Well, minus a few rather significant details.

"I see," Inoichi mused while noting something down. "Okay, now I'll fire off just a few more questions before I take you upstairs."

From there on out, the questions weren't half bad. They were rather generic, in fact; they were similar to the questions Sakura would fill out in her applications for identification cards and passports. He asked her whether she'd ever moved, where she'd traveled in the past year, whether she'd experienced any serious accidents or medical crises recently, and other questions of that nature.

Sakura stuck to answering the questions as she would have in her past life. Except, of course, when she was asked a question on her relationship status, which she was able to answer on behalf of both of her lives.

It seemed she was meant to be single no matter what universe she was in.

"Excellent," Inoichi said once he was through with the questions and setting his pen down dismissively. "Now, I'll see to it you're unbound. Then I will escort you to Konoha's High Council's conference room."

***

The conference room, on the highest floor of the Hokage Tower, was a much more comfortable arrangement than the interrogation room had been. By a long shot. Sakura found herself sitting on a dark brown leather couch facing a group of council members sitting along a table on a risen platform. Although she would take this over the prison any day, the room had an unnaturally constricting feel to it. The high ceilings made it too spacious. The lack of windows made the air too still. And the way all the council members were facing her made Sakura feel like the real test was just beginning.

She paused to take in the faces before her. The only person she knew was Sarutobi, Konoha's Hokage, who was seated in the middle. He was adorned in his long, white, Hokage robes and matching headdress, under which his aging face and beady eyes were directed at one of the other council members. She vaguely recognized the other three members from formal events and important executive meetings she'd attended with Tsunade on occasion. To Sarutobi's right, according to the placeholders, sat Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, and to his left sat a grim-looking man with short, dark hair named Danzo Shimura.

Danzo… Now that name rang a bell. Sakura couldn't quite put her finger on the context in which she knew it, but she suspected that Tsunade's many complaints about how the council members were trying to "ruin her fun" were likely sources.

"Why so tense, Ms. Haruno?" the Hokage asked as a tiny smile graced his lips. "Make yourself comfortable and we'll begin."

Sakura leaned back a couple of inches, attempting to unstiffen a little, but she kept her mouth firmly shut. What was the old man playing at? Did he think this was a joke, or was this a strategy of some sort – to soften her up so she'd be more willing to disclose information about herself?

Then again, when Sakura thought about it, Ino's father really hadn't put on the hard-ass interrogator persona she'd expected either.

What kind of tactics were these?

"Right, well. We've called you here to discuss a particularly… unusual situation that has been brought to our attention," said the Hokage while lacing his fingers together and resting his elbows on the table. "I have a special interest in your medical expertise. It's unprecedented, you know, for someone your age to have mastered such elite skills."

"I suppose it is," Sakura said, her tone rather flat. It was taking a huge portion of her concentration to keep her voice from catching. This was is, wasn't it? This was where her mission got exposed to the council members, and then eventually, to the entire village. And what would become of her then, when people found out she was from the future? Well, they'd never treat her normally, that was for certain. And surely it wouldn't be kept a secret either, meaning that she was likely to die. Tsunade had explicitly told her, on the night she sent Sakura back in time, that if word of her connection to the time travel scroll got into the wrong hands, she could be killed for it.

"Wait!"

The double doors on the wall behind Sakura were thrown open. She spun around to find Ayame, her supervisor at the hospital, come bursting into the conference room. A pair of Jōnin security guards were lingering by the doorway, who Sakura presumed had unlocked the doors for her. "I hope I haven't missed anything," said a breathless Ayame as she approached the couch, her brown hair twisted into a messy bun on top of her head. She had apparently discarded her white coat, but she was still wearing green scrubs from work.

"You are just in time. Please have a seat next to Ms. Haruno," Sarutobi said kindly. Danzo didn't seem to share the same sentiments.

"It was you who called for this meeting, wasn't it?" he asked, the corners of his mouth twisting into a frown. "What is the purpose of all this?"

Sakura froze. "You…?" she breathed, and swivelling around to face her supervisor, who was now perched on the couch. Sakura couldn't believe it. Ayame was the one onto her. All this time she'd come off as so genuine and supportive, but, as Sakura had learned throughout her ninja career, those qualities didn't make a person any less dangerous.

But how  _did_  Ayame catch her? Sakura must have slipped up somehow at the hospital. Perhaps during the hospital break-in. Or maybe it was earlier today, when she was healing the boy in the Emergency wing. Or maybe the bloody Strength of a Hundred seal was already visible on her forehead.

 _Great._  Why didn't she ever listen to Ino about the importance of keeping a compact mirror on her at all times?

"Yes!" Ayame said before turning to look at Sakura sheepishly. "I'm terribly sorry I didn't warn you beforehand. But we really don't have time to waste. And I don't care how old you are or what world you came from – I need you! The  _village_ needs you!"

Sakura's mind was racing. What the hell was going on?

"You said that her resemblance to Tsunade is as clear as day, is it?" chimed in Koharu who was eyeing Sakura through dark, narrowed eyes.

"It is! And there's no mistaking it!" Ayame said, and Sakura couldn't understand why she sounded so positively thrilled. Did she really want her intern to get prosecuted that badly? "She works with such professionalism and precision that we'd be out of our minds  _not_  to promote her."

Wait.

… what?

Sarutobi heaved a long sigh. "As I told you earlier," he said, shaking his head. "We simply  _can't_ have a Genin serve on a board, let alone practice as a licensed doctor. It's unheard of and could be damaging for the reputation of Konoha's medical system's governing body."

"But, sir!" Ayame pleaded, leaning so far forwards on the couch that she might tumble off. "I  _must_  insist. I don't know where she learned it from, but just today, Sakura conducted an advanced procedure all by herself, and followed our hospital's protocol to a tee. Please, sir, we are understaffed. Couldn't you give her a chance?"

Sakura's heart was drumming in her ears. With a stab of guilt, she realized that Ayame  _hadn't_  set her up for a punitive interrogation. No, it was just the opposite, wasn't it?

Ayame wanted to  _promote_  Sakura, despite her young age and low ninja status. And the predicament was so unheard of that she needed to consult the high council.

Was that really what all this was about? Was Inoichi's interrogation nothing but a security clearance?

…And not about her time travel mission after all?

"Don't you find it just a little unusual that someone so young and talented would turn up now, right when you need her?" drawled Danzo as he rubbed his thumb and forefinger along his chin.

Sakura's sigh of relief got caught in her throat.

"A little," Sarutobi agreed thoughtfully while surveying her over his laced fingers. "And let us not forget how her abilities have been relatively dormant until very recently, it seems."

"But she cleared Inoichi's assessment," interjected Homura while leafing through the sheets of paper before him. "He didn't detect anything unusual in her medical evaluation."

"But what if Sakura were a Chūnin?" added Ayame, who seemed to be struggling to stay seated. "Would you feel more comfortable with promoting Sakura if she were of higher rank?"

Sakura stared wide-eyed at her supervisor. For the first time, it dawned on her that she  _recognized_  Ayame. She was certain now that an older version of this woman had been working under her in her former life. And here she was, defending Sakura before the high council like her life depended on it.

Sakura decided that when she got out of this mess, she would buy Ayame the biggest bouquet of flowers she could get her hands on.

And if, somehow, she ever went back to her old life, she would award the woman with a promotion of her own.

"Hm," said Sarutobi, while raising an eyebrow. "Weren't you invited to participate in this year's exams, Ms. Haruno?"

"Yes," she somehow managed to get out despite the dryness in her throat.

He paused for a moment before turning to catch the eyes of the other elders. They all seemed to be communicating something through their stares. Sakura's watched in earnest, her mind whirling in and out of focus.

Sarutobi finally turned back and spoke again. "What do you say to that, Sakura? Granted you pass your medical exams, if you also graduate to Chūnin, you may work as a licensed medical ninja and take a position on the hospital's governing board. Now, I don't mean for this to offend you, of course, but it would reflect poorly on the village to assign a Genin such a prominent position. And your participation in the exams would be a perfect opportunity for us to carefully observe the extent of these advanced abilities you apparently possess."

Sakura was frozen. Was this really happening?

She glanced at Ayame, who was beaming at her and nodding encouragingly.

And Sakura truly wanted to share the enthusiasm. Desperately, even. What a relief it was that she wasn't going to be tortured or thrown in jail. On the contrary, she was being handed just the job she needed on a silver platter. More than anything else, she wanted to simply accept the offer, stand up and shout "Yes!", and run straight to the Academy to submit her Chūnin Exams application.

But the cards Sakura were dealt didn't allow for her to  _simply_ do anything.

"No," she found herself saying, before she could stop herself. "I'm afraid I must decline. Unless… unless you can meet a condition." Although her voice was steady, she was feeling very small under the scrutinizing gazes.

"A condition?" Sarutobi repeated, his eyes narrowing slightly. The others were watching her with expressions of utter bewilderment.

But Sakura forced herself to ignore them. Because  _now is my only chance_. Now that they might see her as a reputable young prodigy, she felt it was time to tell them what she had been meaning to tell them since that morning.

And when the words slipped out, it felt like an out-of-body experience, like someone else entirely was speaking them.

"The Sound Village must be thrown out of the exams."

It seemed the high council members weren't the gasping types. But during the horrible bone-chilling silence that followed her request, Sakura actually wished they were.

"Why is that?" Danzo asked calmly, but there was an edge in his voice that made the back of Sakura's neck prickle uncomfortably.

"You do realize that the registration deadline is today, Sakura," Sarutobi said. "The Sound Village participants are already in our village. The First Exam is tomorrow morning."

 _Shit._  Tomorrow morning? So soon? Well, never mind that. There was no going back now that she'd thrust her outrageous-sounding claim on them.

"I've… I've done some research, you see," she said and resting her hands on her kneecaps to steady them. "And the Sound Village isn't really a village. In fact, it's a giant laboratory composed of various hideouts and bases scattered throughout the land." Her voice started to trail off a little as she scanned the sea of watchful eyes. Were any of them taking her seriously?

"Go on," prompted Koharu.

All right. At least some of them were willing to hear her out.

Sakura inhaled sharply. "The village was founded by Orochimaru, former teammate of my hero, Tsunade Senju. He created the village with the sole purpose of collecting ninjas for his deranged personal experiments."

"So you're claiming," said Homura slowly, "that the Sound Village endorses human trafficking and human experimentation?"

"Yes," Sakura said with a fervent nod.

"How do you know all this?" asked Sarutobi, who was now exchanging a weary look with Danzo.

"Like I said, I've done my research," she responded honestly. "I've spent a lot of time reading books on Tsunade-sama's and her former teammates. The medical practices in the Sound Village caught my interest, and ever since I learned about them, I've been terrified of the place and the ninjas who come from there."

It was no lie that Sakura has spent a significant amount of her previous life reading books on Sound Village corruption. But she wasn't even sure if all of those books had been  _written_ yet in this life.

Sakura prayed they didn't ask her to produce a reference list.

The high council members were all exchanging meaningful glances and inaudible whispers, but Sakura couldn't tell if any of them were in her favour. Her heart was still hammering against her chest and her fists were clenched so tightly that her knuckles were white.

But if she didn't get the Sound Village out of the exams, Konoha was in danger.

And if these council members didn't believe her now, she didn't know what she would do.

Finally, Sarutobi turned his attention back to the couch. "I appreciate the disclosure of your concerns," he said. "But this proposition is extreme, given the circumstances. The Chūnin Selection Exams serve to strengthen the relationships between the allied nations. It would be rash of us to break that promise, regardless of whether your claims are true." The other council members nodded silently at his side.

_Oh no, oh no._

He was declining. They were all declining. Now they probably thought she was a lunatic. And if the Hokage and the village elders weren't going to help her stop this war, she would have to stop it herself. But she hadn't the slightest idea where to begin.

"Could it hurt to conduct a brief investigation?"

A new voice emerged from behind Sakura, near the doorway, giving her a start. She hadn't even noticed the new presence enter the room. She spun around and when she caught sight of the new arrival, her already-heightened nerves went into overdrive.

It was Kakashi.

"S-sensei!" she choked out and feeling her hands tremble. "What are you doing here?"

Kakashi abandoned his position of leaning on the doorframe and sauntered towards the couch with a hand in his pocket. His exposed eye was staring icily at the high council table, ignoring Sakura entirely. "I'm here to find out why no one bothered to tell me that my student was brought before the high council." He was greeted by silence, and Sakura noticed Ayame shrink back further into the couch. "Are you suggesting I can't take care of my students?" he asked casually, though his voice was laced with a sinister undertone.

"No, of course not, Kakashi," the Hokage answered at once while lowering his hands to place them on the desk.

The anger in Kakashi's eyes seemed to subside then, but still held a firmness that only an idiot might dare cross.

 _Someone like Naruto_ , Sakura thought with an untimely urge to chuckle.

"Good," he said dismissively. "Now, if you don't mind, I will escort Sakura to the Academy so she can register for the Chūnin Selection Exams with her teammates."

"Wait, sensei," Sakura said and getting to her feet. "I can't, I-"

Kakashi finally turned to look at her. His visible dark eye looked tired. "It's out of your hands now, Sakura," he said, shrugging. "If what I've concluded from the situation here is true, you were summoned simply to prove that you are, indeed, a prodigy – a fact which I strongly attest to." He paused, his eyes slowly returning to the council members. "It would be foolish to pretend we haven't always had our suspicions about the Sound Village. And if I've learned anything since I became Sakura's teacher it's that she has a knack for making seemingly irrational decisions that, almost always, end up being right."

The room was silenced. And Sakura was flabbergasted.

"Let's go," he said.

***

And that was how a rather delirious Sakura wound up strolling along the village streets with her teacher after being dismissed from prison and the high council's conference room.

She hadn't a clue what to say to him now. Surprisingly, Kakashi seemed to  _believe_  her far-fetched proposal. Considering his high reputation in the village, having his confidence might end up saving her ass.

But… why  _did_  he believe her?

"I take it that you… trust me, sensei?" Sakura asked, breaking the long silence and shooting him a hesitant sideways glance.

"Do I have a reason not to?" he answered without peeling his eyes from the road. "You're a smart kid. It would be foolish of me to pretend I haven't noticed something usual about you."

Sakura gulped and anxiously waited for him to elaborate.

"You seem to have predictive abilities that don't always make much sense in the moment, but that tend to keep Team Seven out of danger. I have my hunches about what's going on with you, and I don't think you mean to cause any trouble. So as long as you prioritize the squad, I will trust you." His visible eye shifted in her direction.

Inexplicably, Sakura had urge to cry.

Since Sakura's parents were civilians, Kakashi really had become something of a parent figure through her years as a young ninja. Having his trust, at least to some extent, felt like a piece of her she hadn't even known was missing had been returned.

Nevertheless, Kakashi admitted that he found her  _unusual_. He probably knew more about her predicament than he was letting on, but at least there was hope that they might forge some sort of relationship again. "Th-thank you," Sakura stammered but there was so much more that she wished she could say.

Kakashi merely shrugged in response. "Well, you'd better hurry on in there," he said and nodding towards the Academy doors, which Sakura hadn't realized they'd arrived at. "The boys have been complaining about your absence all afternoon, so please go find them and save me an earful."

Sakura's stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch. Because she couldn't register for the exams – not yet. "But, Kakashi-sensei, I can't! What about the Sound Village?" she said hurriedly, her mind bubbling with panic. The Chūnin Exams weren't any safer to take now than they were before!

But, to her surprise, Kakashi outstretched a hand towards her and ruffled her hair affectionately. Sakura's body seized at the familiar gesture. "We'll just have to wait and see."

***

Sprinting pell-mell through the crowded hallways, and after what felt like an eternity, Sakura finally caught sight of just the individuals she was looking for.

"Naruto! Sasuke! Wait!" she cried, while pushing her way through a small crowd of Grass ninjas.

At the sound of their names, both boys whirled around. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto bellowed back and putting his hands on his hips. "Where the  _hell_ have you been? We just found out that we can only register in teams of three. And, honestly, if you hadn't turned up in five more minutes, I would have forged your signature and registered you myself. Believe it," he added with a pout.

"But you… you haven't registered yet, have you?" she asked between heavy breaths and hunching forwards to rest her hands on her bent knees.

"Not yet," Sasuke answered while folding his arms and staring down at her through narrowed eyes. "And not until you've explained what happened back there. After the restaurant."

Sakura exhaled deeply and straightened up. Right. He deserved an update on why their mock-date was interrupted so mysteriously.

_Also… if I can stall them long enough, we might miss the registration deadline altogether…_

"Wait, what restaurant?" Naruto interjected and glaring suspiciously at his teammates. "Why wasn't  _I_ invited?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Butt out of this, dumbass," he snapped.

But such comments tended to have the opposite effect on the feisty, blonde ninja.

"If  _my_ teammates are going to keep sneaking off to make out, it sure as hell  _is_  my business!" he boomed and drawing the attention of nearby groups. "As unlikely as this might sound, one day on a mission, I might need help from you, Sasuke. And if you keep getting sidetracked,  _my_ life could be put on the line!"

Onlookers were actually pausing to listen in on the heated exchange now. Sasuke's eyebrow was distinctly twitching as his face flooded with colour – probably due to some mixture of rage and embarrassment. "Naruto… you're dead," Sasuke growled.

Sakura, on the other hand, was hardly paying attention. She cast a quick glance at her pocket watch to discover that they only had to kill about  _two more minutes…_

That was when an automated voice broke out over the intercom system.

"May I have your attention please," rang out the voice, after a few seconds of static and high-pitched ringing. Sakura jumped. She certainly didn't remember anything remotely close to this happening in her old life. "This year's Chūnin Selection Exams have been delayed by one week. I repeat: this year's Chūnin Selection Exam have been delayed by one week. The registration deadline, however, has not changed. If you still need to register, please do so immediately. Thank you."

And then with another fizzle of static, the voice disappeared and the chattering around them resumed.

Sakura's heart just about stopped. The exams… were delayed? Could it be… could it honestly be that the high council members  _listened_ to her and Kakashi after all? Were they going through with a Sound Village investigation?

Sakura was suddenly overcome with a giddy excitement that she hadn't felt in years. Maybe things were, in fact, against all odds, going to work out in her favour. Maybe,  _just maybe_ , the Sound Village would be thrown out, and the exams would be made safe.

And how nice would it be for her to unleash the full extent of her new powers, to actually achieve a Chūnin status this time around, and get the promotion at the hospital she was entitled to?

"Boys!" Sakura announced as she latched herself onto their arms. "Weren't you both listening? We have to register  _immediately_! Hurry up!"


	18. A Small Omission

"Sensei, can I please speak to you for a moment? In private?"

Kakashi lazily tilted his head to catch his student's gaze. "You can," he said simply and Sakura knew she had his attention then.

"I… I have a favour to ask you. If it isn't much trouble," she said, carefully selecting her words. She wasn't sure if she was overstepping some sort of boundary in their newly revamped relationship. If she asked too much of him now, would he be willing to help her out when she was in a pinch in the future?

Well, there was one way to find out.

And Sakura could think of no bigger pinch to be in.

He was looking at her expectantly. "Kakashi-sensei… What do you say to conducting one-on-one training sessions for the Chūnin Exams?"

After a silent moment, he shrugged and turned his head back towards the orange book in his hands. "I'm not opposed to it," he said nonchalantly. "What would you like to work on?"

Sakura gulped and let her eyes drift towards the training grounds before them, where her teammates were currently sparring. Naruto's army of clones was forming a circle around Sasuke, who was crouched in a defensive stance. Sakura's eyes lingered on the Uchiha for a moment before she willed herself to speak again. "Not me. I want you to train  _him_ ," she said and nodding towards her black-haired teammate. He was now roundhouse kicking Naruto's swarm of doppelgangers.

Kakashi followed her gaze and raised his eyebrows. "Why is that?" he asked.

Her brow furrowed. She was unsure of the best way to go about this. "Well I… I think he has an affinity for using the Lightening element, like yourself. He could probably learn a lot from you."

After a pause, Kakashi closed his eyes and leaned back against the tree truck behind him as a cool breeze swept past. All of Naruto's clones were gone now, and the original Naruto was charging at Sasuke head-on with his balled fists flailing.

"What's the real reason?" Kakashi asked casually without opening his eyes. "Sasuke is my most talented student. He doesn't need the extra help."

Sakura frowned. He was right, of course. But how could she convey her worries without letting on just how much danger her teammate was in? "I just think that he's… desirable. He's the only person left with Konoha's most prestigious bloodline. Don't you think he'll be targeted for it?" She looked on at the battle for a moment. Sasuke had blocked Naruto's attack and was now on the offensive, aiming a series of strikes at Naruto's pressure points. "I don't know. I just think a little extra defense could only do him good," she added.

Right then, Naruto managed to get a hold of Sasuke's wrist, and with a mighty growl, pulled Sasuke into the air and attempted to flip him over and ram him into the ground. But Sasuke read Naruto's intentions too quickly. Just in time, he locked his feet around one of Naruto's ankles and kicked sharply, causing the blonde to lose his balance, loosen his grip… and land right on top of Sasuke.

"You have a point, I guess," Kakashi said slowly while he watched the boys flail around on the ground in an angry heap as distant cries of "let go!", "get off!", and "too close!" resounded through the grounds. "You sure this isn't just an over-worried girlfriend talking?"

Sakura felt heat rise in her face. She'd nearly forgotten that Kakashi was still under the false impression that they were in a relationship. "No," she said quietly and staring determinedly at the ground and puzzling over why his comment was making her feel so tongue-tied. She  _wasn't_  over-worried. This was about stopping a war and saving the world! She was far from an over-worried girlfriend – she wasn't his girlfriend at all!

_God. Calm down, Sakura…_

Naruto and Sasuke were scrambling to their feet now, both looking disheveled and profoundly disturbed. "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto called over. "I really hope it's lunch time because I can't train with this lunatic anymore!"

"Stole the words right out of my mouth," Sasuke grumbled at his side while rubbing the dirt off his face with the back of his hand.

Kakashi chuckled to himself. "I'll see what I can do," he said to Sakura before snapping his book closed and addressing the boys. "Good timing. I was just getting hungry myself."

***

The next two days weren't easy for Sakura. Not with all the confusion surrounding the Chūnin Selection Exams bouncing around in her mind.

The exams were delayed for one week. But why? The only logical explanation she could muster up was that the high council members actually took heed of her concerns now that Kakashi was backing her up. If that was the case, they were likely conducting an investigation of the Sound Village, and if all went as planned, Sound might be thrown out of the exams entirely.

But now that Sakura really thought it through, what were the odds of that happening anyways? The Sound Village probably kept their deranged practices hidden well under the radar. Realistically, in anticipation of circumstances just like this one, Orochimaru probably set things up to appear like a normal, functional village. And his experiments, she presumed, were likely conducted in the shadows. So would Konoha's investigators even find anything there, if they were even there at all?

Sakura had way more questions than answers, and they were plaguing her endlessly. Aside from waiting around, there was absolutely nothing else she could do that wouldn't get her a) in trouble, b) killed, c) thrown in a psych ward, or d) mistrusted by the villagers.

She somehow managed to carry on with her regular routines for a couple of days, albeit her preoccupied thoughts. She partook in mindless D-Ranked missions with her team in the mornings, went to work at the hospital in the afternoons, spent the evenings with her family or practicing her medical techniques in her bedroom, slipped out to the training grounds with Sasuke at night, and crashed on his couch after sending a shadow clone home to stay in her bedroom. Throughout the course of those days, however, she didn't speak much or display her usual feisty air. None of it mattered anymore – not her job, her relationships, or even her training.

What did any of it matter if she failed to stop the war? The exact same chain of disasters were bound to happen and her entire mission would be for naught.

As time passed by, she became acutely aware of the unfamiliar chakra signatures looming around in the village. She tried with all her power not to imagine the kind of characters that were prowling the streets, trapped here for an extra week because of her – particularly Orochimaru and his cronies. Surely this delay was doing wonders for Konoha's economy, but it was taking one hell of a toll on Sakura's nerves.

Late afternoon on the second day after the interrogation, following a pleasantly challenging shift at the hospital, Sakura grew the courage to enter the threshold of the flower shop. During her hospital shift that day, Ayame let Sakura into the operating room (even though she probably wasn't supposed to) during the removal of a tumor on an elderly man's lung. Sakura was assigned the role of distributing equipment to the surgeons, but she wound up giving them directions and conducting informal quality control assessments. The whole ordeal was quite rewarding and proved to be a wonderful networking opportunity.

All of that to say, Sakura was feeling rather guilty over having doubted her kind, thoughtful supervisor's loyalty. At the very least, she felt she owed Ayame a gift of some sort – something like a bouquet of flowers.

When Sakura entered the flower shop, she was graced by an icy stare from her ever-emotional blonde friend (or maybe it was ex-friend at this point). She had no idea if Inoichi, Ino's father, had shared any information about Sakura's interrogation with his family. It didn't seem like Sakura would find out either, since Ino determinedly ignored her as she browsed through the rows upon rows of flower arrangements.

After several minutes of browsing in silence, Sakura assembled a small bouquet of pink carnations, a flower which she vaguely recalled having some symbolic meaning for gratitude, and hesitantly approached the cash. "I'll take these, please," she said after clearing her throat to catch the platinum blonde's attention.

Ino, who had been filling out some inventory forms, shifted over to the cash without sparing Sakura a glance. "No need to guess who  _these_ are for, is there?" she sneered as she punched something into the register.

"They're for my supervisor," Sakura answered flatly.

Ino shot Sakura a disbelieving glare but said nothing more. She charged Sakura the full price and after paying, Sakura bolted out of there without another word. The bitter tension was driving her insane, and the last thing she needed was exposure to another stressor to push her over the edge.

It sucked that their friendship was crumbling to pieces, but the village walls would soon be too if Sakura immersed herself in petty drama at a time like this.

Her friendship with Ino just might have to be sacrificed for the greater good.

***

The rest of her afternoon was relatively ordinary up until dinner. Sakura took her usual seat at the table as her mother served the food and her father sauntered in from the sitting room. But then Sakura's mother looked up from the steaming pot of rice in her hands and said something rather unexpected.

"So, we had a little chat with your sensei today, Sakura," Mebuki began as she set the pot down on a hot plate. "He told us what's been going on with you over the past few days. And I must say that I'm…. Well, I'm a little surprised, to say the least."

Sakura's stomach dropped.

Her mother simply  _couldn't_  be talking about the interrogation, could she? If Sakura's parents found out that she was getting involved in village politics, they were sure to have a barrage of questions for her.

And, frankly, Sakura would rather be sent back to prison for more questioning than try explaining this mess to her parents.

"I'm not impressed that you're leaving us in the dark," chimed in Kizashi as he eased himself down at the head of the table. "I get you're not home much, but we at  _least_ expect you to tell us about the big stuff in your life."

Sakura was going to  _kill_ her sensei.

As if she didn't have enough to worry about at the moment, now her parents were being dragged into the chaos. Why the hell hadn't Kakashi warned her he was going to spill the beans to her family?

"What did he say?" she asked carefully while scooping vegetables onto her plate.

Mebuki sat down across from Sakura. "Well, he told us about the restaurant situation," she said while casting her daughter a pointed look, her green eyes flashing. "But I really wish I'd heard about it from you."

"You're our only child, Sakura," quipped Kizashi while shaking his head disapprovingly. Kizashi was a large, rather imposing man for a civilian. He could be intimidating when he wanted to be. "And we can't support you if you don't tell us a thing."

"I'm sorry," Sakura mumbled while bowing her head in dismay. "I should have told you everything right away." She hated disappointing her parents. They were huge supports in her life. Their agreement to enroll her in the ninja Academy despite their hopes for her to take a different (and less dangerous) career path showcased as much.

"Damn right you should have," Mebuki huffed, her tone softening slightly. "So, when is he coming over for dinner?"

Sakura paused. _Dinner… for what?_

"Who? Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked while lifting an eyebrow.

Then, much to her confusion, her parents burst into laughter. "Well, I certainly hope not," said Kizashi while slapping one of his hands onto the table. " _That_  would complicate things."

"Would it ever!" Mebuki agreed while covering her mouth to stifle a chuckle.

_Okay. What the hell is going on?_

After several excruciatingly long seconds, Sakura's parents finally came to grips with themselves. "That young Uchiha fellow, I thought. What's his name?" asked Kizashi before turning to his wife.

"Sasuke! How many times have I told you?" Mebuki snapped. "Anyways, Sakura, I know you think we're both too _old_ to understand these things, but believe me: we've been there. Entering the world of dating can be stressful and we are here to help."

_Well. This conversation is taking a mighty fast turn._

"Um… thanks," Sakura said unsurely as it dawned on her that this wasn't about the interrogation at all.

"We want you to make a good impression. It's not every day you come across a young man from a prestigious clan, after all," Mebuki said with a determined nod.

"But let's not judge a book by its cover, am I right? We need to see if he's suitable for you," added Kizashi. "Invite the guy over for dinner this weekend."

"Er… yes. I'll do that."

Sakura really  _was_  going to kill her sensei.

***

Sakura finally felt a glimmer of hope about her life early on the third morning after the interrogation.

She was changing out of her pyjamas in Sasuke's living room after a long night's sleep on his couch when she noticed a carrier hawk land outside the window with a small scroll fastened to its leg.

Out of courtesy, she pulled on her training gear and went out to meet the large, brown bird and take in Sasuke's mail for him. She threw open the doors and was greeted by the glare of the bright morning sun and a chilly breeze. Rubbing her hands along her bare arms, Sakura approached the hawk, but froze in her tracks when she caught sight of the scroll clasped in its talons.

The scroll was a deep shade of red embroidered with golden leaves – Konoha's emblem. As Sakura had learned over the years of living in Konoha, scrolls adorned with that colour combination were used for important announcements – from festival invitations to warnings of natural disasters and ambushes.

Naturally, Sakura's attention was piqued.

She slowly returned to the living room with the scroll in hand.

_A scroll just like this must have been sent to my parents' place too, right? So it can't hurt if I take a quick peek… even if this one is addressed to Sasuke…_

If the village  _was_ under attack, she reasoned, the sooner she found out, the better.

So without further ado, Sakura wrenched the scroll open. Inside it was a short message written in inky, slanted letters.

_Attention Chūnin Selection Exams participants:_

_Enrollment details for the upcoming Chūnin Selection Exams have been amended. A total of 153 Genin from Konohagakure, Sunagakure, Amegakure, Kusagakure, Takigakure, and Kirigakure will participate._

_The First Exam begins on Monday at 9:00am sharp. If you are late, your team is subject to disqualification._

_Ibiki Morino_

Sakura was frozen in place.

Wait. Did she read that right? She skimmed the letter again.

Otogakure wasn't there.

The Sound Village  _wasn't_ … participating?

Her heart was hammering in her chest.  _Am I reading this right? Is this some sort of trick?_

Sakura desperately needed a second opinion.

Before she could think better of it, Sakura found herself flying down the hallway to Sasuke's bedroom with the unraveled scroll in hand.

"Sasuke!" she gasped as she slammed open his bedroom door without any regard for the fact that he was probably sleeping.

Sasuke bolted upright, a kunai in hand and Sharingan activated.

 _Looks like I'm not_   _the_ only _one with jumpy reflexes._

"What the hell–," he started, but Sakura interrupted him.

"I need you to read this for me," she said while briskly striding over to his bedside and inwardly praising the Gods he appeared to sleep mostly clothed while he was home. That certainly saved them from some unneeded awkwardness.

He swiveled around to sit on the edge of his bed, keeping his eyes trained on her the entire time. He deactivated his Sharingan once she sat next to him but he was still poised for a counter-attack if the situation called for it.

It was only when Sakura had eased onto the mattress did the repercussions of her actions dawn on her.

Sasuke's body heat and scent filled the dimly-lit room and he wasn't wearing anything but a pair of navy boxers and a t-shirt. She'd never been in Sasuke's bedroom before ( _is that a picture of Team Seven right on his bedside table?_ ) nor had she ever done something quite so bold ( _and a book? Does he read before bed?_ ) in his presence. Considering her teammate's intolerance for invasions of his personal space, surely Sasuke's reaction to this would be an unpleasant one.

_Focus! That doesn't matter right now._

Right, Sakura needed to get back to the letter. Casting aside all interfering thoughts, she thrust the scroll into Sasuke's hands and beckoned for him to read it.

"You went through my mail," he commented as he scanned the letter.

"Yes, well… That's not the point," she said hurriedly. "Is Otogakure listed as a participating village?"

When he finished reading, he slowly said, "No. Why?"

Sakura inhaled sharply.

There had been an investigation after all. And the Sound Village had failed it.

Which meant that the exams were safe. The  _village_ was safe.  _Sakura's promotion_ was safe.

 _Sasuke_ was safe!

This was all too much to take in.

Sakura was on her feet in an instant with a surge of adrenaline. "No reason!" she beamed while Sasuke ogled at her with confusion.

Water collected in her tear ducts when her eyes met his.  _He'll be fine this time,_ she thought and throwing her arms around him with such force that he nearly toppled backwards onto the bed.

"Sakura!" he grumbled against the front of her shirt. But his voice was muffled and Sakura barely heard him.

Her energy levels were through the roof – she needed to move. When she released Sasuke and motioned to leave, he caught her hand just in time.

"Where are you going?" he demanded, his expression serious though he was evidently baffled by the unexpected hug.

"It's time to start the day!" she answered sweetly while carefully prying her hand free. And then, without backwards glance, she booked it out of his room.

"Sakura! What's going on?!" was the last thing she heard before she raced right through Sasuke's front door, laughing, and with a skip in her stride.


	19. Sparring

Sakura's manic invasion of Sasuke's bedroom was the last they saw of each other for the next three days, aside from their brief interactions during the missions and training sessions with the rest of Team Seven. Sakura had an inkling that he was hoping to corner her and demand an explanation for that strange encounter, but it wasn't like he was going to bring it up with Naruto anywhere in the vicinity. That was just a recipe for disaster. And aside from their usual routines, Sasuke and Sakura were both extremely busy.

By some miracle, the good news didn't stop with the letter she'd read in Sasuke's flat; Sakura discovered that very day that Kakashi was, in fact, taking Sasuke under his wing for extra training. Although the Chūnin Selection Exams were probably considerably safer now that the Sound Village wasn't participating, Sakura figured it would be best to err on the side of caution. The more Sasuke was able to defend himself, the better.

Kakashi chose to train alone with Sasuke in the evenings, meaning that Sakura's late night training sessions with her teammate were temporarily discontinued. And Kakashi ended up keeping Sasuke out so late that Sakura was usually passed out on his couch long before he returned to the flat. In all honestly, Sakura wasn't sure if there was any benefit to hanging around in Sasuke's flat anymore. Given his absence, there wasn't much difference between her staying there (unattended) and staying at her parents' house (where she could keep a closer eye on the time travel scroll).

Although… Sakura didn't mind the arrangement. His house was much cleaner and quieter than hers, making it an optimal environment to study from medical textbooks and practice ninjutsu without disturbances. She also had a feeling that Sasuke still expected her stay in his flat, considering how her alleged stalker (who likely didn't even exist) hadn't been caught.

And…  _okay_. Now that Sakura was hyperventilating less often, she could acknowledge that there was something pleasant and (dare she say)  _thrilling_  about spending so much time in Sasuke's presence.

Despite their limited physical contact as of late, Sakura found other means of reaching out to him. On the second night of his private training with Kakashi, just before going to bed, Sakura put together a simple dish for her teammate and left it in his fridge. She wasn't sure how he felt about her meddling with his grocery items, but when she opened his fridge the following evening, the food she'd prepared was gone. So she made Sasuke another meal the next day.

As for Sakura's own training, after one night of practicing by herself, she quickly realized that she needed a new training partner. There was only so much she could do herself. At first, she considered asking Naruto if he'd meet her in the evenings, but after some careful thought, she decided to explore her other options first. She already spent a considerable amount of time testing her patience working with him on missions and, at this age, Naruto was a dreadful teacher.

But who  _were_  her other options?

She began ticking off the names of her other old friends. She definitely wanted to work with someone talented who would have an interest in teaching her new skills. But if this person's abilities solely revolved around a special bloodline trait, the training session would be of little use to her.

Sakura nodded to herself.

_I know just who I'm going to ask._

***

As anticipated, Rock Lee was ecstatic when Sakura showed up at his front door with her training gear.

The over energetic, green jumpsuit-wearing boy looked just as Sakura remembered him (which perhaps spoke to how little his future self had changed). His shiny, black bob-cut, beady eyes, and busy eyebrows were unmistakable.

The same could be said for his massive crush on Sakura. He had always been forthright about his feelings for her, especially in the case of this younger, less mature Lee, who hadn't quite grasped the difference between  _wanting_ to date someone and  _actually_ dating them. Thus, as anticipated, Sakura spent the coming days dodging romantic declarations and politely declining dates.

 _This is worth it, though,_ Sakura reminded herself for the umpteenth time a few days later, because Rock Lee had unmatched skills in taijutsu.

As a product of having virtually no abilities in ninjutsu, through sheer determination, this boy had honed skills in gritty, raw martial arts so advanced that they rivalled and often surpassed the talents of any ninja their age. This had a certain appeal to Sakura, who didn't have any special bloodline traits herself.

Simply being in Lee's presence for extended periods of time was quite exhausting, however. She worked as hard as she could during their training sessions, pushing herself pass the point where she and Sasuke would normally call it a night, but Lee's stamina never seemed to waver.

"Are you even human?" Sakura found herself gasping on numerous occasions. Lee seemed to take this remark as a huge compliment for some reason.

There was only so much one's stamina and strength would increase after just three days of intensive training, but Sakura managed to retain a range of new physical techniques, ways of approaching opponents, and rather unusual (but potentially useful) acrobatic maneuvers to strike and pin enemies down with in battle. She was curious just how many of these new skills would prove useful in real combat.

As it turned out, Sakura would have an opportunity to test that much sooner than anticipated.

On Friday morning, when Kakashi finally showed up at the training grounds to meet his students, he made a brief announcement. "Our mission got cancelled," he said.

Naruto  _whooped_ loudly followed immediately by a sheepish, fake attempt to look disappointed _._

"And I have some things to do today, so I'm going to leave you all to spar for the morning. Don't kill each other because we  _do_  have a mission tomorrow. See ya." And then, as quickly as he appeared, their sensei vanished in a cloud of smoke.

 _Spar?_ Sakura thought, excitement bubbling beneath her skin. It had been  _far_  too long since she'd last sparred with the boys.

"All right!" Naruto exclaimed while raising a fist into the air. "It's every man for himself! Ready, set, go!" And with that, he created five shadow clones and crouched into a fighting stance.

"Wait, wait, wait," Sakura sighed while rubbing her temples. "We need to lay down some rules. Every man for himself would probably be a horrible mess."

From there, Sakura organized a new set-up for their sparring matches. They would participate in one-on-one fights while the third member acted as a referee with the authority to stop any match that was getting out of hand.

And Sakura had a funny feeling that her role as a referee would be a very active one.

"Okay," Sasuke agreed. "Who goes first?"

" _We're_ going first!" Naruto bellowed and waving a threatening finger in the Uchiha's face.

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "All right," he said. "But I don't see why you're so eager to lose."

"Why you!" Naruto snarled through gritted teeth before advancing with rage in his eyes.

From then, not only fists but also ruthless insults were tossed.

Sakura perched herself beneath the shade of a nearby tree and used the opportunity to observe her teammates' fighting styles. Naruto was, without question, an extremely offensive fighter. He was reckless and made his motives rather obvious, but he had more brute strength than his sparring partner and he managed to throw more hits, although not all of them made it to their target.

Sasuke, in contrast, was far more defensive, so he spent most of his time dodging the army of Naruto's clones. He was faster and lighter on his feet than Naruto, and although he aimed fewer strikes, each one was deliberate and calculated.

After about half an hour of punching, kicking, and cursing, the hem of Naruto's left pant leg caught fire. "You bastard!" he yelled as he tried stamping out the flames with his other foot, which turned out to be a horrible idea because he was making the burn on his left leg even worse. Sakura raced over to Naruto, who was now rolling around on the ground, and promptly poured a water bottle onto his pants.

"I'm calling the match," she said while crouching over Naruto's leg to heal it. She tore away the singed fabric to reveal a nasty second-degree burn.

"You okay?" Sasuke asked while crouching over the two of them with a mocking smirk.

"Knock it off!" Naruto growled back. The arguing ensued until Sakura was finished with Naruto's leg.

"You should rest for this round, Naruto," Sakura ordered before he had a chance to protest. "Let's go next, Sasuke."

"Sure," he answered with a shrug. They made their way to the middle of the grounds, ignoring Naruto's whining behind them.

As they squared each other up and assumed battle stances (Sakura borrowing one of Lee's; she stood straight and held one arm out in front of her, palm up), Sakura considered what the best approach to fighting the Uchiha prodigy might be. By a long shot, he was stronger and faster than her, had no obvious weaknesses, and had a special bloodline trait that allowed him to predict her movements. Despite her rigorous training for the past several months, Sakura's movements were no where near as sharp, powerful, or coordinated as they were in her previous life.

So, to put it bluntly, Sakura was at a huge disadvantage even at full strength.

_But I'm cleverer than him._

If Sakura had any chance at winning, she would need to outsmart her opponent. The trouble was, she didn't know  _how_  yet.

They caught eyes and exchanged a nod, and then the fight began. Sakura launched her attack first by running at Sasuke head-on, but flash-stepping behind him at the last second. By the time he turned around, she had already crouched down to aim a sweeping kick at his legs, which he managed to block just in time. Sakura had learned in her training with Lee that frequently changing your position, through flash-stepping or simply faking out your opponent, was a very useful strategy in man-to-man combat.

So that's exactly what she did. And Sakura found, to her great pleasure, that her method of constantly moving and changing directions allowed her to stay in stride with Sasuke, for the most part. In fact, he only managed to land one good hit so far, but she'd seen it coming and managed to block it and minimize the damage. Sakura also took advantage of her superb abilities in chakra control by concentrating chakra to her limbs to enhance each of her own strikes.

But something was starting to get on her nerves. "You aren't using your Sharingan," Sakura remarked through heavy breaths after about ten minutes of close combat. She blew a stray stand of hair out of her face and closed in again.

"I don't need them," he replied with an amused glint in his dark eyes as he delivered a blow that just grazed Sakura's already-aching arm.

Sakura gritted her teeth.  _Is that so?_ she thought with a new rush of determination.

She was going to get Sasuke to activate his Sharingan if it was the last thing she did.

It was time to speed things up.

Without wasting a second, Sakura aimed a sharp punch at Sasuke's throat, but as soon as he raised his arm to counter it, she changed gears and cast a Substitution jutsu.

A log appeared in place of Sakura, whose real body was winding up to strike a pressure point in his back from behind. By the time he discovered her intentions and whirled around to block her attack, Sakura was making the hand seals for the exact same jutsu, and disappeared again.

Sakura kept her charade up for a while longer, and each time, she appeared in an entirely new position. Above him with shuriken in hand, behind him with a kunai to his throat, below him, poised to take out his ankles, up the tree with her fists blazing with chakra…

Round and round they went. Sakura managed to successfully trick him with eleven substitutions, in fact (at which point she began to feel the effects of chakra depletion), when Sasuke grew frustrated.

Actually, it was more like he completely snapped.

After luring Sasuke around the base of the tree, right as she was winding up to throw a punch at his jaw, with lightning-fast speed, Sasuke snatched at the front of her dress and slammed her against the tree. The impact nearly knocked the breath out of her as the trunk crumbled against Sakura's back.

_That'll leave a mark._

She wheezed against the collar of her dress, which was pulling tightly against her throat. Sasuke, who was breathing heavily with his eyes closed, finally came to his senses and loosened his grip.

"That's… frustrating," he growled while opening his eyes to reveal a pair of crimson red irises.

 _I did it!_ she thought with a surge of emotion. Sakura hadn't expected to beat Sasuke in hand-to-hand combat – not without her older, stronger body or the Strength of a Hundred seal. But she was still rather pleased with this small victory.

Now if she wasn't in so much damn excruciating pain, she just might have celebrated.

"Oi, Sasuke! Don't man-handle Sakura-chan like that!" called Naruto, who was scrambling to his feet. "What kind of technique is that, anyways? I'm disqualifying you!"

"No, Naruto," Sakura groaned and attempting to smile. "This is fair game." Though, she had to admit, Sasuke wasn't normally the type to lose his cool.

Sasuke released Sakura and took a step back while she slid back down the trunk and landed on her feet with an impact that sent a shock up her ankles. "Your fighting style has changed," he remarked to Sakura, observing her carefully as his eyes faded back to black. "Who have you been training with?"

"An old friend," she answered with a shrug, silently enjoying leaving the air of mystery. One of the reasons she'd managed to hold her own against Sasuke was because he incorrectly assumed he knew everything she was capable of.

She made a private note to train with Lee, and perhaps the other rookies, more often. Then she might actually stand a chance of keeping Sasuke in the village when he tried to leave it in the future.

"Okay, my turn! Believe it!" exclaimed Naruto while punching the air dramatically.

 _Oh, great._  Sakura winced as she straightened up. Sasuke sure managed to do some damage with that last hit, and she'd nearly forgotten that there was one more fight to go.

"Heal yourself first," Sasuke ordered with a frown. "I injured you."

"It's fine," Sakura dismissed. "That's a waste of chakra."

Naruto, who was way too thrilled at the prospect of sparring again, didn't seem to notice her injury. "Let's go, Sakura-chan!" he hollered while conjuring up several clones and leading her away from the tree, under which Sasuke was now standing with his arms folded.

This wasn't good. Despite the predictability of Naruto's advances, Sakura's back injury was going to slow her down considerably. And the doppelgangers were surely going to attack from multiple directions at once, which meant she couldn't afford to get caught in the middle of them.

_It'll have to be long-range then._

As Naruto's barrage of clones charged, Sakura loaded up her fist with chakra and slammed it into the ground, sending large chunks of earth, and most of Naruto's clones, flying in all directions. She used the opportunity to spring backwards and fire a fistful of shuriken at the clones, and, as a result, nearly all of them disappeared in puffs of smoke.

Sakura managed to repeat this tactic a few times, using her chakra-loaded punches and weapons to keep Naruto and his clones at bay, but her chakra was depleting at a fast rate and her untreated back was getting worse the more she moved.

Finally, after about fifteen minutes of long-ranged combat, one of Naruto's clones made it through her weapons' fire. He flash-stepped behind her, and before Sakura could brace herself for it, he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist from behind to pin her in place. The pain in her back was debilitating now, and Sakura couldn't help the cry that escaped her lips and the tears that collected in the corners of her eyes.

She managed to catch sight of the real Naruto propelling himself into the air before her, preparing to deliver a finishing blow.

_This is going to hurt…_

_Pow._

With a loud crack, Sasuke appeared out of nowhere and punched Naruto square in the face, sending him reeling face-first into the ground. The clone behind Sakura disappeared immediately, leaving her to collapse in a heap.

Sasuke was staring down at Naruto now, his expression unreadable. "This match is over," he snapped before turning to Sakura.

"You shouldn't have done that," Sakura groaned, though she was secretly immensely relieved. Surely she would have found a way to counter Naruto's punch, but at the expense of worsening her injury.

Sasuke considered her comment. "I just wanted an excuse to punch him, honestly."

"What was that, bastard?!" spluttered Naruto through a mouthful of dirt. He was on his feet in an instant. "We can fight again, if you'd like!"

But Sakura barely heard him.

_Something's off._

She hadn't the slightest idea why, or how it came on so suddenly, but at that very moment, a terrible, uncomfortable chill swept through her body. Her skin was crawling and her heartrate was quickening. What was going on?

She noticed Sasuke seize up and turn away from Naruto, his gaze locking on the tree behind them, to where a silent figure was peering out from the branches.

It was Gaara.

 _This is bad!_  It appeared their sparring matches had attracted the curious Sand ninja and future Kazekage. At this point in time, however, Gaara was no village protector. No, Sakura knew that Gaara as a young teenager was a psychopathic mass murderer who had, unlike Naruto, already tapped into his demon's powers and used them to kill for pleasure.

"What do you want, you red-haired punk?" taunted Naruto, who seemed to clue in that his teammates had redirected their attentions to the newcomer.

"Naruto, stop," Sakura pleaded, and taking hold of his arm. "Let's go home." She knew Gaara was way out of any of their leagues; he was probably more powerful than the three of them combined, especially after they depleted so much energy on sparring.

Then two new figures appeared in swirls of leaves. Sakura recognized them immediately as Kankuro and Temari, Gaara's teammates. They were both quite tall, with broad-shouldered Kankuro supporting what Sakura knew to be a massive puppet on his back, and Temari, the striking blonde in a fitted, lavender dress, carrying her giant fan for orchestrating Wind style jutsu. "What have you gotten yourself into now…?" Kankuro started before peering towards Team Seven from under his dark hood. "Oh! Pink! You're the pink healer girl, aren't you?" he exclaimed with a crooked smile. "See, Gaara, it's a good thing we didn't leave you here to kill them, huh? We'd be in trouble for messing with someone like her."

"What's that?" Naruto butt in, balling his hands into fists. "What makes you think that brat could kill us?" But no one seemed to hear him.

Sasuke flash-stepped in front of his teammates defensively. "Who are you?" he demanded coldly, and Sakura watched, with a tinge of annoyance, as Temari proceeded to check him out from head to toe with a raised eyebrow and a smirk dancing on her lips.

"Oh, oh!" said Kankuro excitedly. "You must be-"

"Sasuke Uchiha," Sasuke interrupted. "Now answer my question."

Sakura had to admit that Sasuke sure knew how to sound cool when he wanted to be.

"And me! I'm Naruto! Believe it!"

…And Naruto had a bit more work to do on the coolness front.

Gaara finally spoke, his pale, dark-rimmed eyes roaming over the trio. "My name is Gaara of the Desert," he said in a soft yet icy tone.

"And we're Temari and Kankuro," added Temari, while running her fingers along the edge of the fan fastened to her back. "We're here for the Chūnin Exams."

"We're taking them too," Naruto boasted as he stepped forward. "Why don't we have a little practice battle right here and now? Team Seven versus Team Sand Creeps!"

"Wait!" called Sakura, but her plea went unnoticed.

"You know… that's not a half-bad idea, is it?" said Kankuro with a mischievous grin. "What do you say, Gaara? Why don't we finish off these brats?"

"Don't!" scolded Temari, while glancing nervously at Gaara, who was now staring hungrily at Sasuke. "We can't risk him losing control. Not now."

"And I've got to go to work," Sakura added desperately. "You two will be outnumbered."

"This won't take five minutes," Sasuke gloated and cracking his knuckles.

"No! Stop it!" Sakura cried, and stepping between her teammates and the Sand ninjas. "We are  _not_ fighting them.  _We are going home."_

"I second that!" chimed in Temari, her voice dripping with annoyance. "Now, why don't all you boys get your testosterone levels in check? If you're planning to do something stupid, save it for after the exams so we don't get disqualified!"

"Aw. But that's no fun," whined Naruto, but his competitive spirit was finally draining.

Temari rolled her eyes and snapped her fingers at her teammates. "Let's go, guys. Be patient. We can kick their asses later."

Sakura caught Temari's eye and mouthed a small  _thank you_ before the Sand ninjas made their ways back towards the village core.

 _Thank the gods that didn't escalate_. A fight with a boy who killed ninjas for sport was the last thing they needed right now.

Team Seven stood around awkwardly until the others were well out of ear-shot. "Well… If there isn't any more fighting going on, want to go grab lunch with me, Sakura-chan?" Naruto tried.

Sakura shook her head and reached down for her bag of training gear. She winced profoundly at the motion. "No, Naruto. Like I just said, I've got to go to work."

"Oh, right. Well, what about you, Sas-… Wait. No. You aren't invited, Sasuke. We are  _not_ hanging out until you replace my pair of burnt pants!"

"Deal," Sasuke answered, a little too quickly. Sakura rolled her eyes. There was no way in hell Naruto was getting any new pants.

With that, Naruto took off for the nearest ramen restaurant after claiming that he was going to die of starvation if he didn't go immediately, leaving Sasuke and Sakura to clean up the training grounds.

When all of the weapons were retrieved, Sakura approached her teammate hesitantly. Despite her living in his flat, they hadn't been alone together in ages. "Hi," she said as she approached the tree Sasuke was organizing his things under.

He cast her a quick glance before turning back to his bag. "Hey," he answered bluntly without saying anything more.

Sakura paused to watch him in silence for a moment. A part of her expected him to initiate the conversation, perhaps to ask about her injury, her invasion of his bedroom, or even thank her for leaving the food in his fridge. He did none of the sort, however. Sakura frowned.

But then a thought occurred to her. "Are you training with Kakashi-sensei tomorrow evening?" she asked.

He paused. "No," he said while standing up and brushing himself off. "We can train together like before."

Sakura bit her lip.

_Here goes…_

"That's… that's not exactly what I meant," she said and ignoring her powerful urge to run and hide.

This was going to be  _extremely_ awkward.

Sasuke raised his eyebrows as he slung the bag over his shoulders. "What is it then?" he asked, finally turning around to look at her.

After a deep breath, she said, "Well, Kakashi-sensei had a word with my parents. And… long story short, they're expecting you over for dinner tomorrow."

He stared at her blankly for a moment before realization crossed his features.

"I see," he said quietly. He looked to the side, seemingly distracted by something in the distance, before turning away and starting his walk towards the village.

Sakura hobbled after him with a hand pressed to her aching back, and suddenly felt very anxious for reasons she couldn't quite explain. "Look, I don't want to do this any more than you do," she said hurriedly. "But if you just come over once, my parents will leave us alone. You'll never have to see them again."

"Yeah," he replied a little dazedly, his eyes fixated on the ground. He was clearly uncomfortable with the situation. Either that or pissed off.

"I'm sorry about this," Sakura mumbled, feeling her face darken.  _I shouldn't have brought it up at all._  "We can always stage a quick breakup and pretend none of this ever happened." That option posed a potential way out of this mess, though it might open the door to a new slew of drama.

"No. It's fine," Sasuke finally said. He pulled his eyes away from the ground and shoved his hands in his pockets. "I just haven't done anything like this since before he… since before the massacre."

His statement caught Sakura so off-guard that her breathing hitched. Now  _that_  hadn't occurred to her at all. Aside from the odd lunch with Team Seven, Sasuke probably hadn't eaten in a group setting since before his family was murdered all of those years ago.

Sakura's heart clenched as she cast him a nervous glance. "Well, if it helps, I'm pretty sure my parents already like you. They haven't found out about the broken window yet," she tried with a tentative smile, unsure if Sasuke was in the mood for humour.

"That was your fault, anyways," he replied with a smirk, and to Sakura's relief, the conversation lightened from there on out.

 _Crap._ This dinner was going to be a bigger deal than she'd anticipated, and not only for her, but for Sasuke as well.

And all Sakura could do now was pray that her parents decided to go easy on him.


	20. Past the Threshold

With the Chūnin Selection Exams only two days away, Sakura was scrambling to stock up on medical supplies, squeeze in some last minute training, and set up a few more booby traps to further ninja-proof her bedroom. She was anticipating a prolonged separation from the time travel scroll while she was in the Forest of Death, so she needed to ensure that the traps were effective. With that thought in mind, Sakura took a few extra precautionary measures, such as sealing her bedroom door shut with a jutsu (to keep her parents a safe distance away), dipping each shuriken and kunai in a debilitating poison, and developing an antidote for said potion in case another disastrous accident took place (like if Sasuke decided to crash through her window and get himself stabbed in the leg again).

Speaking of Sasuke and her family, Sakura couldn't help the bubbly anticipation that surfaced at the thought of the fast-approaching meet-the-boyfriend dinner.

Well, he wasn't actually her boyfriend, but Sakura's parents didn't know that part.

_I'd better not screw this up,_ Sakura thought anxiously. Because if she and Sasuke let on that this whole thing was a scam, the trust between her and her parents would surely suffer some damage. And if Kakashi too found out they were lying, he might be less keen to support Sakura in future times of need.

Also, what if Sasuke didn't get along with her family? Sakura had a feeling that her mother was already sold on the prospect of her daughter dating the Uchiha heir, but she wasn't so certain about her father. If her parents disproved of Sasuke, it wasn't like Sakura could stop spending time with him considering how he was her teammate, training partner, and her only real confidant in this confusing new life.

Sakura was finding herself anxious on her teammate's behalf too. His unanticipated emotional reaction to her invitation was playing on a loop in her head. This silly dinner wasn't worth bringing about any painful or traumatizing memories. It was surprising enough that Sasuke didn't refuse her offer point-blank because it wasn't like they were  _really_  dating. In fact, in the broad scheme of things, tonight was completely and utterly pointless.

_That's right. It's just a silly dinner, Sakura,_ she reminded herself over and over again as she made her way home from the training grounds after spending another afternoon working on taijutsu with Lee.

_This is just a small, insignificant event that means nothing to the time travel mission. You aren't facing Zabuza, Gaara, or Orochimaru for goodness sake. This is just…_

…  _something I've been fantasizing about for my entire life._

All right, who was she kidding? On top of her nervousness, Sakura was a  _little_  excited. After all, the boy she'd been pursuing for her entire existence was coming over to  _meet her_   _family._ Even if it was just an act… the occasion held some symbolism that Sakura couldn't quite shake.

Alas, when Sasuke showed up at her front door on Saturday evening, Sakura was wearing the pale, green summer dress Ino used to tell her brought out her eyes, a lacy white headband she'd totally forgotten about owning, and even some basic silver jewelry.

She was feeling a tad disoriented when she threw open the front door, since, as usual, her mother's meal preparation was running far behind schedule and the house had been a mess up until three minutes prior. Regardless, she was pleased to find that Sasuke had dressed up a little himself. Well, it was more like he'd ditched the shorts for a pair of black pants and paired them with a dark grey top. His hair was an unruly mess as always, but that look seemed to suit him, as Sakura and every other female (and most males) in the village would attest to.

"Hi," she said a little breathlessly and smoothing down her own hair as she led him inside. But Sasuke never got a chance to answer her because Mebuki had flocked over to the hallway to greet him with a barrage of comments like: Let me take your shoes! Do you have a coat? I hope you're hungry! How was the walk here? Why, don't you look handsome this evening!

Sakura cringed and shrunk back against the wall. The poor guy hadn't even made it out of the entryway and already her mother was  _swooning_.

They were ushered into the sitting room across from the kitchen while Mebuki finalized the dinner preparations. There, they joined Kizashi, who was lounging on an armchair and enjoying a glass of red wine. At the sight of Sasuke, he beamed widely. "Well!" he boomed while raising his glass. "What a pleasure it is to have the sole heir to the famous Uchiha clan in our household!"

Sakura felt a strong urge to bury her face in her hands.

To her relief, Sasuke didn't seem too fazed by her father's in-your-face demeanor. "The pleasure is mine," he answered with a polite nod before taking a seat on the couch. Sakura followed suit, relieved that Sasuke seemed accustomed to interacting with adults, perhaps because he was raised attending formal events on the regular. As far as Konoha's standards went, his family had been royalty.

Sakura grimaced. Her own dinners were the absolute  _furthest thing_  from royalty. So if Sasuke had any grand expectations for the evening, well, he was in for quite a shock.

"Can I get you a drink?" Kizashi offered, beckoning toward the glass in his hands.

"Dad!" Sakura scolded and shooting him a pointed look. "We're not of age yet!"

Sakura's inner nearly-eighteen-year-old self was screaming in protest. An alcoholic beverage would do her nerves wonders right about now. But considering her brain's bizarre state of affairs (she still wasn't sure how old her brain was), it was probably best she avoided mind-altering substances for a long time.

Kizashi merely shrugged. "In these times kids are working younger, marrying younger, dying younger… I don't see why you can't have a drink if you want to. This ninja business is dangerous work and I don't want either of you to be deprived of the wonders of alcohol before, you know, you die or have kids or something."

_Oh my God._ Sasuke hadn't been in her house for five minutes, and already Sakura was embarrassed beyond belief.

***

Thankfully, the excruciating exchange in the sitting room was cut short because Mebuki called them in to eat soon after. But the dinner itself wasn't any better.

Both of Sakura's parents had poured themselves several glasses of wine throughout the course of the meal and seemed to be having a splendid time questioning their guest. At first the questions weren't so bad. When Sakura's mother asked Sasuke about his scores in the Academy, he had no trouble impressing Sakura's parents. He had the highest marks in their year, after all (even higher marks than Sakura's). Soon after, when he was asked about his hobbies, Sakura learned that Sasuke enjoyed hiking and reading in his spare time.

Unfortunately, everything seemed to go downhill from there.

"You are  _such_  a responsible young man," Mebuki gushed while swirling around the wine in her glass. "It must have been so hard growing up all alone. But Mikoto raised you well, didn't she? I always admired your mother. She was a very kind woman."

"Indeed," chimed in Kizashi. "Your  _entire_  family was very kind, in fact. Except that Itachi fellow. Your older brother. I'm not sure what went wrong with him. I'm surprised you're even related to him, frankly."

Sakura wanted to slam her face onto the table. Was this really happening right now? Talking about Itachi was  _off limits_ with Sasuke around. Apparently her parents never got that memo.

She cast a nervous glance at Sasuke, whose expression was as blank as always. He gave a polite nod and simply said, "Thank you."

_Oh, how embarrassing._  They were treading on very thin ice now and Sakura didn't dare venture to imagine what was going through her teammate's mind. He probably hated them all. Could her father have picked a worse topic of conversation?

"Now, Sasuke. Have you had any past girlfriends?"

Oh. Yes, apparently he could.

"No," Sasuke answered between bites of food, his tone casual. He  _must_ have been masking some sort of contempt for them all now.

"I find that hard to believe," Mebuki said with a wink.

_Oh god, oh god, oh god… please stop._

Somehow, Sasuke didn't seem too fazed by the comment. He merely smirked while keeping his attention locked on his food.

"And you ended up choosing  _our_  Sakura," said Kizashi with a fond smile. "Well, you clearly haven't spent much time with her yet if you still think she's datable," he added with a snort, which was followed by both of Sakura's parents falling into fits of laughter.

" _Guys,"_ Sakura groaned and rubbing her temples. And, to her horror, Sasuke looked rather amused by both her father's comment and her reaction to it.

Unfortunately, the conversation took an even worse turn after that. Sakura's parents felt the atmosphere to be just right to start spewing embarrassing stories from Sakura's childhood, her quirks, her early Academy blunders, and other things that she had been perfectly content with Sasuke  _not_ knowing. Ever. Sure, she was relieved that the attention was diverted from Sasuke's personal life, but it was at the expense of them talking about  _hers_ instead.

"Mom," Sakura groaned, feeling her face glowing all shades of red. "Sasuke does  _not_ need to know about my imaginary ninja friends from when I was a kid!" But that comment only triggered another round of laughter so she decided to shut up and pretend this whole thing wasn't happening.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they got through dessert and Sakura caught a quick break in the conversation to ask Sasuke if he would like to take a walk with her. Pleasantries were exchanged (Sasuke shook Kizashi's hand, which earned him a fond clap on the shoulder, and praised Mebuki's cooking, which landed him a spine-snapping hug) before Sakura practically yanked Sasuke out the door by the arm.

***

"Look, I am really sorry about that," Sakura said while twisting her fingers together anxiously. "I knew it would be brutal but… I didn't think they'd be  _that_  obnoxious."

"It's fine," Sasuke answered flatly. His hands were shoved in his pockets and he was gazing towards the setting sun. It was a rather beautiful evening for a stroll. The sky was painted various shades of oranges and pinks along the horizon. A warm glow was sweeping through the village, aside from the spots where long shadows were cast by rows of houses lining the streets, and a gentle breeze sent pleasant chills down Sakura's bare arms and legs.

She stole a glance at her teammate, who she presumed was hiding his true feelings about the torturous experience at her parents' house. His expression was as unreadable as it always was and his gaze was pointed at something far in the distance. They turned down a path that led to a small park in the heart of town. Sasuke didn't make any indication as to where they were going, but Sakura figured they would make their way back to his place eventually, as they usually did.

Even though they were free from her parents' presences, Sakura wasn't feeling much relief yet. This walk felt like it was dragging out forever and Sasuke's silence was infuriating Sakura more than it usually did. He was probably feeling some combination of anger and annoyance after that dinner. But why wasn't he saying anything? Sure he was an actions-more-than-words guy, but his actions just weren't making any  _sense_ these days _._ He accepted the food she left in his fridge, but he never thanked her or even mentioned it. He aggressively slammed her against a tree with no remorse, but then punched Naruto square in the face before he could get anywhere near Sakura in their sparring match. He forced her to stay at his place, but had made no (apparent) attempts to ward off the alleged stalker who was breaking into Sakura's bedroom.

Sakura cursed her stupidity. She just  _had_  to go and pick the most emotionally unstable, unreadable, insensitive human being on the planet to develop feelings for. And now that they were pretending to date, he was fifty times harder to understand.

"Have they met him too?" Sasuke asked suddenly, breaking the silence and pulling Sakura from her thoughts.

"What?" she asked, rather abruptly. She had no idea what he was talking about.

His eyes were trained on the path ahead of them. "Your parents. I'm asking if they've met that guy you have history with or whatever," he muttered.

_Wait, seriously?_ Sakura had nearly forgotten that Sasuke thought she had some sort of sadistic ex-boyfriend who she was devoting her life to saving. And the irony of it all was that this very person he was making all these false assumptions about was  _himself._ Well, the Sasuke of her old life.

And, all right, he'd turned out to be rather sadistic in the end. And it was true that she was determined to save him. But it wasn't like they had any real romantic history like this Sasuke apparently thought they did.

"Um, no. Not like that," she answered and forcing her eyes to focus on the rows of trees lining the path.  _And if they had met him, it's not like they would be able to tell him apart from_ you _, anyways._ She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. Her life was such a ridiculous mess. Why the hell was Sasuke asking her about her  _history_ in the first place? Of all things he could bring up, why this?

And then, as if Sakura's emotions needed any other reasons to go into overdrive, Sasuke grabbed her hand.

She flinched profoundly and spun around to look at him, alarmed, but he paid no notice to her reaction. "Kakashi's nearby," he said dismissively.

"He… oh," Sakura answered, and fighting the colour rising in her face. Of course this was about Kakashi. And once she calmed down enough to focus her senses, she also felt Kakashi's presence lurking somewhere ahead on the nearby streets.

They continued their walk in silence. Sasuke seemed content in his own thoughts, and despite how her mind (and hormones) were now in overdrive, the rest of the walk was rather relaxing. They'd adjusted their grips on each other a few times until the hand-holding became more comfortable (though it was still pretty far from natural). Sakura didn't dare look his way again, especially because he seemed to be in an unusually quiet and reflective mood that she was a little weary about interrupting.

She couldn't help but notice, however, now that her worries over the Chūnin Exams were subsiding, that the dynamic between them was strikingly different than it used to be. Would Sasuke ever have held her hand like this in her old life? Would he ever have agreed to spending an evening with her family, let alone, walking through the park with her?

Sakura felt her chest tighten sadly because she knew exactly what the answer to those questions was.

"Do you still want to train tonight?" she asked a few minutes later as they neared his house.

Her question seemed to break his train of thought because he straightened up and blinked a few times before answering. "I'm just going to bed," he said as he used his free hand to pull his key from his pocket.

"Oh. Okay," she said, a little surprised by his uncharacteristic answer. He led her up the steps and only let her hand go after he opened the front door.

***

Sakura spent the night practicing her medical ninjutsu in Sasuke's living room. She decided not to venture out to the training grounds alone, with it being only two nights before the Chūnin Exams (the village was probably crawling with foreign ninjas just itching for a fight). So instead, she set up her stack of textbooks on the floor and worked on channeling massive amounts of her medical chakra at once. Unfortunately, given the lack of live patients or lab animals to practice on, she was forced to practice on her own arms and legs, by inflicting minor injuries to them with her weapons.

But after only about an hour of training in this manner, Sakura started feeling tired herself. She'd expended a considerable amount of chakra and her limbs were starting to ache from being damaged and patched up again in such rapid succession. So after mopping up all traces of her blood from the floor, she changed into the pair of her spare pyjamas she kept in Sasuke's hallway closet, washed up in his bathroom, then curled up on the couch. She fell asleep instantly.

But she wasn't asleep for long.

After barely a few hours, Sakura was awoken by a noise in the kitchen across the hall. It was only the soft creak of a cupboard opening, but Sakura, who was conditioned to sleep with one eye open, roused abruptly at the disturbance.

It was pitch black. She inched her head upwards, in the direction of the kitchen, which was normally viewable from her angle on the couch, but her eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness yet and she couldn't see a thing. Her heartrate quickened and she kept her body as still as possible, listening intently. A moment later, she heard soft padding on the tiles of Sasuke's kitchen floor. Someone was in there.

Without further delay, Sakura pried the kunai out from under her pillow and dove blindly for the small lamp on the side-table at the opposite end of the couch. She flicked on the light and sprang to her feet, weapon poised.

The kitchen across the hall was still obscured by shadows, but Sakura was now able to make out a figure rummaging through the cabinets beside Sasuke's oven. The rummaging stopped as soon as Sakura turned on the light.

"Sakura. Go to bed," came Sasuke's voice then. Relief washed over her. It was just him. But just to be on the safe side (because, for all she knew, this was some impostor using a Transformation jutsu), she kept her guard up.

"What are you doing?" she asked, holding her kunai ready at her hip as she crept across the hallway to the kitchen. The smooth, wooden floor tiles felt cold beneath her bare feet.

But Sasuke didn't answer her and he resumed his rummaging. Her curiosity was steadily growing, and when she reached the entrance to the kitchen, she turned the kitchen light on the dimmest setting. Sasuke, who was standing across the kitchen with his back to her, froze.

"Sasuke?" she asked slowly as she ventured across the kitchen to meet him, her grip steadily tightening on the kunai's handle. She couldn't help getting a suspicious vibe from the whole situation.

"Yeah?" he answered without moving an inch, his tone cold and flat.

"What… what are you doing?" she repeated unsurely as she passed by the kitchen table and approached him near the oven. He didn't acknowledge Sakura or even move a muscle, which Sakura found terribly unnerving. What the hell was going on?

And then, it was like something snapped inside him and he slammed the cupboard shut with a flare of aggression. "I said  _go to bed,_ " he snarled without meeting her eyes. Sakura jumped back with alarm. He was gripping the countertop so hard that his knuckles were turning a ghostly white.

Through the shock, Sakura felt a pulse of fear at his lethal tone, suddenly aware that she was in the presence of a guy who could snap her neck with a single, effortless strike if he really wanted to. And she  _shouldn't_ be afraid of Sasuke. Not anymore, not in this life.

But that didn't stop her from retreating. Without a word, Sakura backed away, switched off the lights, and curled up on the couch with her knife and a million thoughts.

***

But she didn't sleep.

Sakura waited instead. Waited until Sasuke left the kitchen, ten minutes later. Waited until he returned to his room and closed the door. Waited until his chakra signature flickered and lulled into sleep. And then she was back to the kitchen in the pitch black with her pocket flashlight.

This was a terrible thing to do, this snooping around. She had no business meddling with her teammate's affairs, especially with something that was clearly causing him some sort of emotional turmoil. But her curiosity got the best of her. What on earth was Sasuke hiding in there?

She started scanning the cabinets, opening the doors as soundlessly as she could (though she couldn't stop every squeak), and praying that Sasuke didn't hear.

Sakura wasn't entirely unfamiliar with his kitchen since she spent most of her evenings in there, and she'd even prepared food for him on a few occasions. But she hadn't explored every nook and cranny.  _Okay. If I don't find anything suspicious in five minutes, I'm just going to head to bed and pretend nothing happened,_ Sakura told herself firmly, because she knew that if Sasuke woke again, it probably wouldn't end well.

That was when she stumbled on a tiny drawer she couldn't open. It was only a few inches wide and it was stuck closed. Sakura gave it a few hard yanks before bending closer to examine it. It didn't take long for her to realize that it wasn't sealed with any physical devices. It was sealed with chakra. Not with a special, complicated jutsu or anything, but with just enough that any normal amount of human strength couldn't pry it open.

Good thing Sakura had plenty of abnormal strength at her disposal. Charging up her own chakra to her fingers, she gripped the edges of the drawer and gave it a firm pull, and, to her relief, the drawer finally gave and slid open in her hands.

And what she found inside rendered Sakura speechless. Pills. Containers upon containers of pills. And whether or not this was what Sasuke had been looking for in his angry, sleepy stupor, these drugs were now harnessing Sakura's attention.

Why did he have all these? Her first thought was that, perhaps, all this time, Sasuke had some kind of illicit drug addiction. But the prescription labels told her otherwise. These drugs had been prescribed to him legally. But… why?

Most of the tiny bottles appeared to be unopened, except for one, which, upon a brief inspection, Sakura recognized as pill with strong sedative properties. In fact, it was among the strongest of sleeping pills that Sakura had prescribed in her past life. Finding sleeping pills in the hands of a ninja wasn't uncommon, given their irregular sleeping patterns and the trauma many experienced after missions. But in the hands of a ninja so young? Well, it wasn't unheard of. But it was rarer.

The rest of the drawer was filled with common remedial pills; anti-inflammatories, unfinished vials of antibiotics, and immune system boosters. But then her trained eye landed on the five bottles at the back, all of which were unopened, and all of which were a different brand of antidepressant.

Why did he have these? Were these prescribed to him, and if so, why wasn't Sasuke taking them? All this time, had Sasuke been suffering right under her nose in ways that she, a medical specialist, should have recognized? What else was he hiding? Her mind was brimming with questions, but she knew it would be best for her to close the drawer now and pretend she never saw its contents in the first place.

After all, she could find out more about Sasuke's medical profile on her own. She wasn't the hospital's hot-shot intern for nothing.

***

And that's just what Sakura set out to do on Sunday morning and one day before the start of the Chūnin Exams. At the crack of dawn, long before Sasuke woke, Sakura slipped out to the hospital after making a quick detour at her parents' house to grab her work uniform. Sakura wasn't scheduled to work today, but she'd gained enough of a reputation that no one ever questioned it when she was there. It wasn't like she ever had a shortage of work to do there anymore.

Right when Sakura walked in, in fact, she was ushered to the surgery wing to help with a heart transplant on a young woman who was beyond the help of medical jutsu alone. She monitored the procedure, distributed tools, and provided plenty of advice to ensure everything went smoothly. Immediately after, she helped a new family physician with one of her first regular check-ups, set a broken wrist, and consulted a psychiatrist about the appropriate prescription for a patient in the trauma wing.

Sure, Sakura wasn't getting paid to do this. Heck, today she wasn't even getting paid at all. But manning the hospital in an authoritative, jack-of-all-trades role felt natural to her. It still came as a bit of a surprise how much the other health care workers trusted her advice so readily, given her age, but she had a sneaking suspicion that Ayame let slip Sakura's upcoming (tentative) promotion. That would explain all of this newfound respect she was getting.

Sakura wasn't complaining in the least bit. It was a huge relief to finally kiss her filing days goodbye. But, of course, on the one day Sakura actually  _wanted_ to go back to the filing section, she got held up in every way imaginable.

Finally, after about four hours of unpaid work, Sakura made it to the wing of the hospital where patients' records were stored. There was nothing unethical about snooping through Sasuke's medical files, she decided. After all, she had been the personal physician for the majority of her friends in her previous life, and could even spew out their medical histories like they were written on the back of her hand.

But Sasuke… The person she thought about most and spent so much time with, was the one person who she knew nothing about. He could have an asymptomatic terminal illness for all she knew.

And as Team Seven's medical ninja, it was essential she was well-versed in her teammates' medical conditions, Sakura reasoned. She was  _entitled_ to this knowledge.

Sakura scanned the shelves for Sasuke's file, a little hurriedly because if someone caught her in there, they'd probably pull her away to help with some other medical procedure across the hospital. But thankfully, after only a minute, she found it and tore it from the shelf.

She stared down at the pale green folder and was greeted by a familiar scowl. A small mugshot of her teammate was on the top right corner to accompany a short list of basic demographic facts, like his age, birth date, and blood type. Sakura only scanned the list briefly because that wasn't what she was here for. She was  _really_ after was whatever was  _inside_ his folder – any medical complications, specialist appointments, rare diagnoses, medical regimes… So, without further delay, Sakura open the file to find...

… that it was empty.

***

Sakura was  _fuming._

She'd just wasted her entire morning on a wild goose chase for  _nothing_. And on the day before the Chūnin Exams! She could have spent those precious hours training or stocking up on medical supplies for the Forest of Death. But, somehow, the hospital managed to lose Sasuke's medical records. And not only that, but all medical history on his deceased family members too (which she checked up on after shoving his empty file back onto the shelf). Some  _idiot_ must have tossed the files away after the massacre, including Sasuke's, for some reason. What a pathetic, rudimentary error. Medical personnel were told time and time again to hold onto the medical records of those killed in combat. And, of course, just when she needed it most, all records of the entire  _existence_ of the esteemed Uchiha clan had up and vanished.

Somebody was going to pay for this.

It took a solid half hour of aimless wandering through the village for Sakura to rid herself of thoughts of the missing files and Sasuke's mysterious medical history. He clearly wasn't about to die of a chronic illness anytime soon since he made it to at  _least_  late teenage-hood in her previous life. So with that thought in mind, Sakura managed to calm herself down enough to focus.

Right. So the Chūnin Exams started tomorrow. There must be  _something_ she should be doing right now.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" trumpeted a voice from behind her.

She whirled around to find the glowing face of her beloved, noisy blonde teammate. "What's up, Naruto?" she asked with a smile.

He skidded to a halt when he was immediately before her. "Nothing," he said with a cheeky grin. "Nothing at all."

Sakura folded her arms. The mischievous glint in his eyes told her otherwise. "What is this about?" she asked, eyebrows raised.

"Nothing!" he repeated, stubbornness filling his tone. "And that's the point! I'm so bored. Let's get lunch."

_Well then._  Naruto's forwardness never failed to surprise her. Sakura had to admit that the prospect of getting food was highly appealing to her at the moment, given how she'd just worked an unexpectedly long, exhausting shift without pausing for a break. "Sure, let's go," she said with a chuckle.

As anticipated, Naruto's face lit up instantly.

"For real? YES!" he exclaimed, punching the air dramatically before grabbing her arm. "Come on! I need ramen."

***

And that's how Sakura found herself in Ichiraku on Sunday afternoon with her bonehead of a best friend (or at least, former best friend and current slightly-more-than-acquaintance). She had to admit, despite his prominently less-mature demeanor, Naruto was such a glowing ball of energy that she couldn't resist feeling at ease in his presence.

"So how's your training going?" she asked before taking her first slurp of the hot meal.

To her surprise, Naruto responded with a sheepish smile. "Good. Well, I mean… I've been training with someone from a different team. So I've learned some new stuff."

Sakura was surprised by this piece of information. Did he already start training with Jiraiya? Or maybe he was talking about Konohamaru? "Who?" she asked with interest.

"Hinata," Naruto answered through a mouth stuffed with noodles. "I ran into her the other day, and since I couldn't find you guys, I asked her to train with me instead."

_That was unexpected_. Sakura couldn't think of two ninjas with more opposite fighting styles either: Hinata who struck with the grace and poise of the artful, majestic Hyūga, and, well… Naruto, who basically did whatever the hell he wanted as loudly and violently as possible. But if her abilities were rubbing off on Naruto in some way… Well, the result might be pretty interesting.

"It's not that you and the asshole aren't good enough to train with or anything," Naruto added while ducking his head and peering up at her with wide eyes. "So I hope you aren't mad."

"Oh no," Sakura answered with a dismissive wave. "I've been training with Lee anyways."

Naruto's eyebrows shot up. "Who?"

_Whoa_. It hadn't occurred to Sakura that Naruto hadn't become properly acquainted with Rock Lee yet. "He's, um… a Genin a year older than us. He's taking the exams too."

_This is weird… I'll have to introduce them._ Though she vaguely recalled an aggressive battle taking place between the three boys when they were introduced in her past life, Lee was certainly a valuable ally to have. He saved their asses last time she was in the Forest of Death, after all.

Naruto shrugged. "No clue who that is," he said. But then his face contorted into one of his signature sneaky looks. "Is dickhead pissed you're training with this Lee guy?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Sasuke doesn't know. And I'm sure he won't care."

"I doubt that," Naruto said with a snicker. "But I don't see why you don't just dump him already. You're  _way_ out of his league. He's overprotective and grouchy."

Sakura's thoughts instinctively returned to Sasuke's drawer full of pills. It couldn't  _hurt_ to see if Naruto knew anything about Sasuke's medical condition, could it? Not that she really expected him to. Even though they'd only been on the same team for a few months, they sort of knew each other in their Academy years, right?

"I don't mean to change the subject, Naruto," Sakura tried, while swirling her chopsticks around in her bowl and staring at it determinedly. "But… you don't know why Sasuke might need to take any medicine, do you? It's just… as the team's medical ninja, it's important I know your medical backgrounds. And Sasuke's medical information is missing from the hospital." She cast her blonde teammate a hesitant glance.

"Oh, sure I do," Naruto answered with a casual nod. "You mean the pills?"

Sakura's jaw just about slammed into the table. " _What?"_ she gasped and resisting her strong urge to rise to her feet. How in hell's name did Naruto know about this? Right now, he and Sasuke were sworn rivals. Calling them  _friends_ was even a little premature whereas Sakura practically  _lived_  in Sasuke's damn house.

To her surprise, Naruto just laughed. "Relax, Sakura-chan!" he said and gripping her arm across the table. "It's just for the usual post-trauma stuff. I was offered some too when I was a kid but my tragedy happened when I was too young to remember it." He paused. "It's an orphan thing, I guess. You know, it's harder to cope with things like that without a family around."

Post-trauma?  _Of course,_ Sakura thought and putting her head in her hands. How could she have been so blind? What kind of unearthly god  _wouldn't_ develop post-traumatic stress after watching their parents get murdered on a loop for days on end  _at the age of eight_? And since it appeared he wasn't actually taking his prescribed medication, his symptoms must either be minimal or hidden very well.

Sakura was furious with herself now. "I'm such a bad friend. To  _both_ of you," she groaned into her hands.

" _Relax,_ Sakura-chan!" Naruto said and pulling back out that cheery grin of his. "You're a great friend." But then he scrunched up his face in concentration. "Well, only if you pay for my lunch."

Sakura managed a weak smile.

"Tell you what," Naruto said while setting down his chopsticks. "How about we hit the training grounds? You know, blow off some steam before the exam tomorrow?"

He had a point, Sakura realized as her own proper smile sprouted. It wasn't like she had anything else to do. "Sure," she said and fishing for the last bites of ramen in her bowl. "Just give me ten minutes to go home and change."

***

Sakura spent the evening training with Naruto – just some light sparring and target practice – before making her way back home for dinner. It was a refreshing evening that proved to be a perfect distraction from the stress of the upcoming exams and her worries for her other teammate, who she hadn't seen all day.

Sakura couldn't stop the guilt from welling up inside her at the thought of what Naruto said over lunch.

" _You know, it's harder to cope with things like that without a family around."_

Her heart clenched. Maybe she'd offer to do something really nice for him that night before they went to bed, like bring him some food or polish his weapons. Just to let him know that she was there.

"Sakura!" Mebuki called upon her arrival to her parents' house, and pulling Sakura from her thoughts. "You got something in the mail I think you'd better have a look at."

Intrigued, Sakura entered the kitchen and took the scroll from her mother's offering hand. She pulled it open and immediately felt her stomach drop with disbelief.

_Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_The Hokage requests your attendance in his office at 8am tomorrow. Lateness for the First Exam, which begins at 9am, will be pardoned should the meeting last longer than one hour._

_Regards,_

_Ibiki Morino_

Sakura slapped her forehead.  _What now?_


End file.
